Vertigo
by MyPalletshippingLove
Summary: Palletshipping. When Ash has to spend a whole month living in the Oak Mansion, his friendship with Gary grows further until the heat and tension between them reach a critical point that makes Ash and Gary learn new things about themselves. How exactly will they react to the fact that they have feelings for each other, boy to boy? Like a vertigo, their lives will go off balance.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Vertigo: n. a sensation of motion in which the individual or the individual's surroundings seem to whirl dizzily.

* * *

The sky is blue and clear, there are no clouds on sight. The wind is whispering in his direction. He is home. He is finally home after being away all these months. He feels relaxed and peaceful; the air is clean.

He breathes in. He breathes out.

He is standing on the hill, the highest place in town, from this place he can see everything, after all, Pallet Town is very small. He sees the Oak Mansion to the west, several houses to the north and he catches a glimpse of his house in the far northeast.

He feels better now.

"We're home, Pikachu," he says looking down at his friend, who is standing next to him.

"Pikachu!" his pokémon jumps to his shoulder in excitement.

This is the place where it all started. Where he grew up, where he found all his dreams, where he met Pikachu.

This is the place where his life changed once… and will change again… forever.

 **-o-**

He is walking the small streets of Pallet Town with Pikachu still on his shoulder. These streets may not be as modern as the streets he used to walk during his last journey, on the Kalos region but these streets feel somehow safer. He knows this place by heart, after all, he lived all his childhood here.

He approaches his house and sees something he didn't see when he was standing on the hill: there are a couple of men going in and going out of his house, those men are carrying construction materials. Builders? What are they doing to his house?

Confused, he walks towards one that is sitting on the bench outside his house.

"Excuse me, is Delia Ketchum here?" he asks worried. His mom must be there, mustn't she?

"Dylan! Here's a guy looking for the boss! Where is she?" he asks to one of his colleagues that is working on the nearby window.

 _The boss? The boss of what?_ He asks himself as he sees the changes those men are doing to his house, the house he grew up in, the house he wanted to spend a month in before he left for his next journey.

But clearly, he wouldn't be able to spend his break days in this house.

Dylan walks out of the house and sees Ash with a confused look.

"Oh! You're her son!" Dylan exclaims surprised.

"I'm Ash." He introduces himself, still confused.

"Your mom should be at the Oak mansion… let's see," he informs and he looks at his watch. "Yes, she should be there, she will come here in about two hours so, you better go to the mansion, do you know how to get there?"

Of course, Ash knows how to get there, is that a joke? He spent lots of his childhood days playing in that mansion, specifically in the lab with all those friendly pokémon.

"Yes, thank you." Ash smiles and says goodbye to those men who are doing God knows to his house.

As he walks down the street, he is still confused. Why did his mom have to remodel their house? Why did she do it without even asking him? It was his house just as much as it was hers! What about his stuff? What about the things in his bedroom? What about his prized possessions?

He tried to calm down.

He breathed in. He breathed out.

His mom must have thought of those things before starting whatever she's planning to do to their house. She must have taken all of Ash's stuff to a safer place, maybe the attic, yes, that was it. She must have stored all his stuff in the attic. His mom was a very intelligent woman, after all.

 **-o-**

Ash stands in front of the Oak mansion. Pikachu jumps off his shoulder to the stairs that lead to the main door.

Ash stands still. He doesn't admit it but he is nervous. His plans didn't include visiting professor Oak so soon, he is nervous because he didn't win the last pokémon League he was in, he was very close, he ended up in the second place.

He knows that professor Oak won't care about it, he has always supported Ash in his main dream of becoming the pokémon Master, but he still feels bad, he was so close… so close.

Ash breathes in. Ash breathes out.

"Pika?" his buddy tilts his head in confusion.

"Let's go, Pikachu." He smiles walking to the door and ringing the bell.

A few seconds pass and no one opens the door. He decides to ring the bell again.

"I'm there! Just a second!" a familiar voice exclaims from the inside. It's not his mother, it's a male voice, but it's too young to be professor Oak.

"Hi!" the voice says opening the door.

Ash recognizes the boy in front of him. He looks exhausted, like he ran a mile to open the door. That boy hasn't seen Ash yet, he is taking a breath, breathing in, breathing out; grabbing the door with his hands and looking to the floor.

"Gary?" Ash asks surprised.

"Ashy-boy?" Gary looks up, surprised.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, come in," Gary sighs, still trying to recover his breath.

Ash looks around the mansion like it's the first time he has ever been there, but he was there lots of time in the past, however everything seems new, though he is sure everything is still the same.

"Oh, right! You must be here because of your mom, I'll go get her," Gary says after he closes the door.

"Wait!" Ash grabs Gary's arm before he takes the stairs.

"Yes?" Gary asks curious.

"Can you explain me what's going on? I mean, with my house being remodeling and my mom staying here," Ash says as he takes a seat on the sofa.

"Wouldn't it be better if she explains it to you herself?" Gary laughs a little.

"Yeah but… she hid it from me, I called her two days ago, and she didn't tell me anything, I mean, she doesn't know that I'm here, I decided to come here to surprise her," Ash says trying to feel better but somehow, he feels bad, bad that his mom didn't tell him about her plans to remodel their house, to change everything.

"Well, I don't know much, just that she's been here for a week, she's staying in one of the rooms in the second floor though most of the afternoon she is at your house, checking that the builders are working fine and all," Gary says without taking a seat. "As for her not telling you… I don't know, sorry".

"I'm probably overreacting, aren't I?" Ash laughs a little.

"Maybe… but still, it's your house just as hers. Honestly, I'd feel angry mostly because of my personal stuff, in case she didn't hide them somewhere."

"That's the thing that's been bothering the most!" Ash exclaims mostly surprised that Gary thought the same as him. "I know it may sound like I am materialist but it's not really that way, I have a lot of memories of my journeys in my room, it's like my sanctuary, you know?"

"Yeah." Gary smiles. "But don't worry, I'm sure your mom kept all your stuff in the attic or somewhere, maybe she brought them here when she came last week, I was in a science congress so when I came home two days after that, she was already living here," Gary explains.

Ash feels better after he listens to Gary's words. At least now his memories of his journeys remain safe. He is sure of that.

"Ash!" Delia exclaims surprised from the top of the stairs.

"Mom!" Ash exclaims just as excited as his mom and he doesn't wait for her to come down, he takes the stairs and they join halfway.

Gary left the room soon after Ash and Delia hugged each other, to give them privacy. He even smiled a little when he saw mother and son hugging, a beautiful reunion.

 **-o-**

Delia explained everything to Ash and of course, she kept all of Ash's stuff in the attic. Ash felt now more than peaceful, he felt better.

She explained that the house was getting old and that she wanted to give it a new essence, that she had always wanted that. She explained to him that the builders would expand the kitchen and the living room, build a small greenhouse in the yard for her to take care of her flowers, and even build a balcony for her room, just because she always wanted one since she was a teenager.

But what surprised Ash the most was that she told him that the builders were also building a small pool in the yard.

"Really? A pool?" Ash asks overexcited.

"I'm still young and I asked to myself… why not?" she giggles.

"Wow, mom, I would have never expected that," he confesses.

She also told him that she had no plans for changing his bedroom, because she had no right to do anything to it without his permission. Now Ash felt better, his mom did think about him. Now he just felt like an idiot for the way he had felt before, when he was walking from his house to the Oak mansion.

"You should have told me you were coming, that way I would have told you all about it."

"I wanted to surprise you." He smiles at her.

"How long are you staying? Two or three days?" she asks as she grabs his son's hat and touches his hair.

"Actually, I want to take a longer break, I'll stay around a couple of weeks, maybe a month or even two," he reveals.

"Oh my!" her tone is not what he expected. "Don't get me wrong, it's just that the house won't be ready in a month, you may have noticed I'm staying here in the mansion, Samuel was so nice to lend me a room, so if you stay, you'd have to take a room here too."

"Seriously?" Ash asks laughing a bit. "I never thought of myself as a guest in the Oak mansion," he sighs. "I don't know, mom… do you think professor Oak will be okay with that?"

"Of course, he will! He isn't here right now but Gary told me he'll be back at night, I'm sure he'll love the idea." She smiles putting the hat back to Ash's hair. "And Gary will like that too!"

Gary. Sure, Gary was kind of friendly when Ash arrived at the mansion… but not the kind of friendly person who would be fine with someone staying in his house for a month… besides, Ash and Gary had their differences… they used to be rivals… used to be… did that mean they weren't now? Or were they?

Ash remembered that the last time he saw Gary, when he was traveling in Sinnoh, Gary said they were friends. Now Ash felt like an idiot again, worrying about things that he didn't have to worry about. Of course, Gary would be fine with him staying… just as long as he didn't bother him that much.

 **-o-**

His mom left to their house, to check the builders and their job so far. She told him to go take the room next to hers, that all the rooms were unlocked, and take a nap. But Ash decided to go see Gary and ask him for staying in the mansion himself. He walked out of the kitchen and into the backyard, full of dozens of pokémon, some of his.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed running to the pokémon and started playing with them.

Ash smiled, he took his time to say hi to his friends and then he entered the lab, leaving Pikachu in the backyard.

As he suspected, Gary was there, typing something in his computer. He was now wearing glasses. He had an intellectual look.

"Ashy!" he exclaimed looking up from his computer screen. "Everything okay with your mom?"

Ash was feeling weird… Gary was being kind of nice to him… when they used to fight all the time, but now they were friends… but he didn't feel this weirdness with Brock, or Tracey, or Clemont. Ash decided to blame his lack of sleep or the jetlag for how he was feeling lately.

He really wanted to take a nap and he would have followed his mom's instruction but he just didn't feel right by taking a room without asking Gary first. He would have asked professor Oak but he wasn't at the mansion right then, so he had to go to Gary instead.

Ash smiled "Yeah, everything's fine," he said walking around the lab "What are you doing?" he asked to start some conversation, he didn't want to ask for the room without having at least talked a little to Gary.

"I'm doing a research on the eevolutions," Gary said typing something in his keyboard.

"Really? It sounds very interesting," Ash said genuinely interested, he took a chair and he sat across from Gary.

"Well, right now I'm just reading some articles, it's rather boring, but I hope to start experimentation next week."

Ash was shocked "Experimentation?"

Gary laughed "Your reaction tells me you think I'm going to do mutations, you're such a loser," he said as he took off his glasses. "In some kind of way I'm going to do that but trust me, no one will get hurt. I'm planning on synthesizing a new stone that will make Eevee evolve into a new pokémon, sounds kind of revolutionary, I know."

"Wow! Do you really think it is possible?" Ash asked caught by the topic as if he were a little kid caught by the glimpse of candy.

"That's why I'm reading these articles, I already have enough evidence but I want to have a little more."

Ash's eyes were wide opened. "It's like… it's like you're going to create yourself a new pokémon, you'll be like a god."

Gary laughed at that comment.

"Maybe. I had never thought of it that way."

There was some silence until Gary decided to say something to keep up with the conversation.

"So, you're staying here?"

Ash blushed. "Can I?" He was nervous, his stomach was crazy.

"Of course, Ashy, there's plenty of rooms in here. You must want to take the room next to your mother's." Gary assumed.

Ash thought of it for a second. It's not like he didn't want to be close to his mom but taking the room next to hers didn't feel like a good idea for some reason.

"I was thinking of a room in the third floor, if it's possible."

"Sure, you can take the one that's next to mine. I feel lonely in the third floor because my grandpa's room is in the second floor and now your mom is living in another one in the second floor."

Ash liked the idea. "Sounds great!"

"So, how long are you staying? Two or three days?" Gary asked with curiosity.

By hearing from both of his mother and Gary that they thought he would stay just for a few days, Ash couldn't stop from feeling guilty, guilty of not spending enough time when he got back from his journeys to Pallet Town, he wanted this break to be different, and he was also tired from his last trip, that's why he decided to stay longer this time.

"I was thinking about a month or two," he finally revealed.

Gary was surprised. "A month? Two?"

"Is there a problem?"

"Of course not!" Gary answered way too fast but none of them noticed.

"Thank you for letting me stay here, and my mom." Ash smiled.

"No problem, Ashy-boy, besides, since your mom is here, she makes breakfast, lunch and dinner, and man! She's a cooking goddess!" Gary's eyes shone.

Now Ash laughed.

Gary stood up. "You must be tired; shall I show you your room?"

Ash stood up too. "Thank you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Ash took a nap in the most comfortable bed he had ever slept on. It felt nice for a change to sleep in an actual bed and not in a tent or a sleeping bag.

He couldn't believe that the rooms in the Oak mansion were so comfortable, even more than the ones in some of the hotels he had slept on during his journeys. He always wondered why the mansion had to have so many rooms, he didn't know exactly how many they were, maybe around 50.

In that moment, he imagined himself as the owner of the mansion, he imagined he could invite all his friends for the holidays and they could all stay in a room! Maybe Professor Oak did that with his colleagues when they had to gather for an important meeting.

He walked to the window where he could watch the backyard and the lab. All the pokémon were there, some playing, some sleeping and some others eating. He saw Pikachu playing with Bulbasaur and Gary's Umbreon.

The sun was going down to the distance, soon his mom and professor Oak would get back. Then he would talk to his mother and professor Oak about his journey… but the idea got him tired enough to want to take another nap.

He walked to the bathroom and he undressed, watching himself from his waist up in the mirror. He left his hat on his head and he laughed at himself.

"I should start wearing this less, shouldn't I?" He took his hat and looked at it, just as his other hats, this hat had a lot of memories from his last journey, all of which were precious to him.

He left the hat on top of the laundry basket, over all his other clothes. Then he looked again in the mirror and he played with his hair.

"Maybe I should cut it… or use some kind of hair gel… or even hair spray." He concentrated on his look in the mirror and then he burst out laughing, Ash had never been the guy who cared for how good he looked, he was the type of guy who would use a t-shirt he had worn the day before if the thought it wasn't dirty enough.

After that, he took a relaxing shower.

 **-o-**

Gary was still working in the lab, his eyes were now tired and exhausted from looking at the screen for hours, even if he had his glasses on. He decided to call it a day, he looked outside and he realized it was already nighttime, most of the times he lost track of time while working in the lab.

He was about to turn off his computer when he got an e-mail from Tracey:

 _Hi mate! Cherrygrove City is awesome! Since I arrived, I haven't stopped painting. This city has truly inspired me, just like you told me! I'm sure it's the smell of cherries in the air and those pink tress everywhere._

 _Thanks again for giving me this trip as my birthday present. Though I'll be missing you and professor Oak as well. I promise to send you photos of my drawings in my next e-mails._

 _Oh! And Marill says hi to Umbreon!_

 _-Tracey_

 **-o-**

Gary smiled as he read the e-mail and he quickly typed a response where he said he couldn't wait to see Tracey's new work.

Finally, he turned off his computer and got out of the lab, closing the door and locking it with his keys.

The backyard was dark now but he walked to the door to the kitchen and turned on a switch that illuminated the whole place, now he could see all the pokémon.

"I bet you all must be hungry," he said walking to a small cabin at the end of the backyard and all the pokémon ran to take their food bowls and followed him, they all knew he was going to give them dinner.

 **-o-**

Ash was drying himself in his room when he decided to walk to the window again, he looked first at the night sky and then the lights in the backyard caught his attention. He saw Gary at the end of the backyard with a big bag and in front of him all the pokémon made a line so organized Ash was so surprised. He could see all the pokémon carried a bowl with them too.

He kept drying his hair with the towel as he watched the beautiful moment of Gary giving food to all the pokémon, even Pikachu was in line next to Umbreon, maybe she was going to share her food with him.

This side of Gary was new to him, for a moment he considered that it was professor Oak who did this and Gary was just doing it because he wasn't there at the moment, but Ash could swear he could see happiness in Gary's face, and it was a happiness that came from doing that regularly, not just when his grandpa wasn't around. Ash was touched.

When he was completely dried, he tossed the towel to the bed but he didn't get dressed afterwards, he didn't want to miss the show. He stood there, naked, in front of the window, as he watched Gary fed all the pokémon.

 **-o-**

Ash finally got dressed and walked downstairs, to the living room, where now Gary was watching TV. He was alone so Ash decided to give him company.

"Mind if I sit?" Ash asked curious.

"Hey! You're hatless," Gary said surprised.

"Yeah, I decided to give my hat a rest… besides, it's kind of ridiculous to wear my hat in the interiors, isn't it?"

Gary laughed.

"Maybe, but your hat is part of your signature, who is Ash Ketchum without his hats?" Gary teased.

"My signature, huh?" Ash gave the comment a smile and a thought inside his mind.

"Still, it's nice to see your hair for a chance, I like it," Gary expressed.

Ash blushed, no one before had said that about his hair… and it was kind of weird that the first person that said it was Gary… but still, it was a nice comment and he embraced it with a thank you.

"Well, have a seat, Ashy-boy," Gary said as he looked through the channel guide for something that caught his attention.

Ash sat right next to Gary and decided to say it. "It was nice, what you were doing outside."

"Huh?" Gary blushed, he knew exactly what Ash was talking about but still he tried to act confused.

"Feeding the pokémon, I saw you from the window of my room, I didn't know Gary Oak had such a sensitive side," Ash said with a small laugh.

Gary didn't know what to say, he suddenly felt like he was being exposed… like he was naked and he couldn't do anything to hide it.

"Hey, it's okay to have a sensitive side." Ash smiled placing his left arm around Gary's neck.

"I may be a researcher, or a scientist if you will." Gary left the remote control on the table next to the sofa. "But I love pokémon just as much as I did when I was a trainer."

Ash took his arm back to himself and smiled. "I have a feeling this month will be just like when we were kids, way before we turned into rivals, remember that I used to come here all the time?"

"Yeah… you were… my only friend," Gary sighed.

"You used to be very shy, I remember… who would say you'd have a group of cheerleaders and a sports car by the age of ten?" Ash teased.

Gary's face turned red of embarrassment. "Oh God! Don't make me remember that!"

"Hey, do you still have your car?" Ash's eyes sparkled when he asked that question.

"No, I told gramps to sell it," Gary revealed feeling a little regret because Ash seemed so excited.

"I think I never told you but I would have loved to have a ride on that car," Ash sighed.

"Oh, shut up! Really?"

"Yeah! You seemed so cool with all those girls, I kept waiting for the day for you to offer me a ride, I would have said yes without thinking it," Ash confessed.

That was a surprise to Gary.

"I… I never thought of that, I'm sorry."

"No need for apologies." Ash smiled stretching his arms. "So, do you have any movie in mind?"

"Yeah!" Gary smiled taking the remote.

 **-o-**

They watched the movie together but they didn't do much talking, they enjoyed the movie and that's what it was. When it was over, Gary stood up and turned off the TV.

"You hungry?" Gary asked Ash.

"Yeah, but my mom isn't back yet."

"I can make us dinner."

Ash's eyes opened in surprise. "You can cook?"

Gary laughed at Ash's reaction.

"Is that so unbelievable?"

"Well, it's just that I've been here for just a day and I've already learned some new stuff about you," Ash said.

"Is that good or bad?" Gary asked with curiosity.

"Good. Definitely good." Ash smiled. "So, what do you plan to make us for dinner?" Now he was curious.

"I was thinking about some enchiladas." Gary gave the idea a thought.

"Sounds good!" Ash agreed, remembering the times when Brock made enchiladas during his journeys to Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh.

"Alright, I'll be done in about half hour, why don't you go play with your pokémon in the backyard?"

Ash took Gary's word and headed to the backyard while Gary walked behind him to the kitchen.

 **-o-**

After twenty minutes of playing with Pikachu and his other pokémon, Ash began to smell something from the kitchen, it was the smell of the enchiladas Gary was making and that smell was delicious, he didn't remember them smelling so good when Brock used to make them.

"Dinner's ready!" Gary exclaimed from the kitchen's window.

"I'm there!" Ash exclaimed "well, buddy, you can sleep with your friends here if you want" he said to his Pikachu.

"Pikachu!" He agreed.

Ash entered the kitchen and saw Gary walking to the dining room with the enchiladas. Delia was already there, sitting in a chair in front of the table.

"Mom?" Ash asked surprised "I didn't hear you come in." He walked towards her.

Gary went back to the kitchen for some plates and some glasses.

"I arrived about ten minutes ago, and saw that Gary was making dinner so I decided to help him." She smiled.

"She gave me her secret ingredient; can you believe it?" Gary said excited, leaving the dishes on the table and walking back to the kitchen for something to drink.

"You have a secret ingredient for enchiladas? How come have you never made enchiladas for me?"

"Well, I haven't had the chance." Delia giggled.

That's when Ash remembered how far he had been from home during the past years, another one of the reasons why he decided to take a longer break this time.

"I made this watermelon juice this afternoon, or do you want some coke?" Gary said leaving a pitcher with the watermelon juice on the table.

"I love watermelon! It's my favorite fruit!" Ash exclaimed overly excited.

Delia smiled. "The juice is good, Gary."

"Well, let's eat then, I'm very hungry," Gary said taking a seat and then Ash sat next to his mother.

Gary served the glasses with the watermelon juice and invited Ash and Delia to take the enchiladas they wanted from the big plate at the center of the table.

Ash took a sip of the juice first while Gary and Delia took some enchiladas from the big plate to their individual ones.

"This is delicious!"

"It's watermelon season," Gary explained. "Well, Ash, miss Ketchum, _bon appetit_."

The three of them had a charming dinner, Ash told Delia and Gary about his latest journey in Kalos, from the new friends he made to the adventures he experienced.

It was a nice evening, he only would have wished that professor Oak were there and it would have been perfect: his mother, his mentor and Gary, who he was sure that, by the end of the month, was going to become a great friend of him, maybe his best one so far.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

His first night sleeping in his new room at the Oak mansion was comfortable, very comfortable. He had never slept in such a comfortable bed in years! He had a peaceful sleep, went to bed with a smile and woke up with another one.

Ash woke up around 9:00am the next day and he looked through the window to the backyard where most of the pokémon were already up and playing. He wondered if Gary had given them breakfast just as he had given them all dinner the night before. If he did, Ash wanted to help him this time.

So, Ash quickly got dressed and brushed his teeth. A few minutes after he was in the living room and he walked to the kitchen. It seemed like nobody was up yet, but he saw some lights in the lab, maybe Gary had already gotten up, eaten breakfast, and given breakfast to all the pokémon. Ash walked out of the kitchen to the backyard and then into the lab.

He didn't see Gary, instead, he saw professor Oak. He was finally home.

"Hey, Ash!" he greeted him with the same enthusiasm he always had. Sure he noticed Ash wasn't wearing his hat but he didn't say anything about it, maybe he already knew Ash wanted to make a change for the time being.

"Hey, professor!" Ash was excited to see his pokémon mentor again.

They hugged for a second or two and then Ash took a seat in front of professor Oak's desk. Ash told him everything about his last journey, pretty much the same things he told Gary and his mother the night before when they had dinner together; Ash didn't mind telling the same story again, it was professor Oak hearing his story now.

"I'm really proud of you, Ash," professor Oak said as he put his hand over Ash's shoulder. "I can sense you're getting closer and closer to the pokémon mastery," he said with a smile.

Ash sighed, feeling a little down. "I was so close to win." Now he was facing down.

"You don't need to win the league to be the Pokémon Master, my friend," Oak said trying to cheer him up.

"Yeah, I know," Ash sighed. "Still, it wouldn't have hurt to win for a chance." Ash smiled weakly.

Oak thought for a couple of seconds before proceeding with the conversation. "You're going to stay here longer this time, right?"

Ash wasn't surprised at how professor Oak knew about it, after all he was his mentor and he knew him very well after all those years.

"Yeah, I just want to… find myself again," Ash expressed.

"It's going to be nice to have you and your mom in the mansion for some time."

Professor Oak and Delia Ketchum were great friends, in fact, Delia once worked as professor Oak's assistant. Maybe the strong bond between his mom and Gary's grandpa was one of the things motivating him to be better friends with Gary.

"Yeah." Ash smiled.

"Gramps, I just sent the letters to Johto's Scientific Community," Gary said walking into the lab reading a notebook, then he looked up and saw Ash sitting in a chair in front of his grandpa. "Ketchum, didn't see you there."

"Good morning, Gary," Ash said.

By the way Gary talked to his grandpa, Ash realized Gary had woken up earlier and already welcomed here, maybe he even went to the airport to pick him up.

"I'll go eat some breakfast. I guess you've already eaten some," Ash said standing up.

"Your mother made us pancakes before she left to Cerulean City about two hours ago," professor Oak informed.

What did his mom had to do in Cerulean City? And why didn't she tell him about it? He didn't let the though make him feel bad this time. Instead, when he thought of Cerulean City, he couldn't stop wondering about Misty and he felt the urge to see her. He was going to stay for a month in Pallet Town, so why not catch up with his older friends, Misty and Brock?

"I think I'll go out for today. I'll see you by dinner," Ash informed.

"Have a good day, Ash!" Professor Oak said with a smile.

"Yeah. Have fun, Ashy-boy," Gary said focusing on something in his computer.

Ash left to the kitchen and had some pancakes and a glass of milk for breakfast. He was ready to leave when he remembered he had left his wallet in his room, he was going to need it to pay for a bus ticket from Pallet Town to Cerulean City.

 **-o-**

Ash went up the stairs to the second floor and then the stairs to the third floor. By the time he got to the door of his room, he saw that the door to Gary's room, just next to his, was opened.

He grabbed the door handle and was ready to close the door, but curiosity caught him in the process. What was Gary's room like? And what sort of things did he keep in there?

"Maybe… I'll just take a look at Gary's room," he said to himself to feed his curiosity.

He walked into the room. It was a very clean and organized place. In one side of the room he saw a bookshelf completely full of books he didn't feel curious to check. He saw Gary's bed near the window, the blankets were kind of nerdy with drawings of the planets. When he looked to the ceiling, he saw lots of stickers of planets and stars, Ash had no idea that Gary was a fan of astronomy; he even saw a small telescope near the window.

So, that was another thing he didn't know about Gary, he smiled but something made him feel uneasy about the fact he knew little about him.

He was ready to leave but then he saw Gary's closet to the other side of the room, next to a desk with a computer and a printer and some scientific magazines. There was also a big TV in front of the bed.

"I bet he has like thousands of lab coats in his closet." Ash laughed and walked to the closet. He opened it and in fact, there were several lab coats hanging there, and Ash couldn't stop from laughing. At least that was something he knew about him.

There was another door to the closet, he wondered if Gary really needed that much lab coats, he opened it and he was surprised to see lots of actions figures displayed instead of clothes. Ash fought the urge to take them and touch them with his hands, he knew this was a collection of Gary's and that it probably was invaluable to him, so he closed the door and walked to the door, finally decided to leave.

But then he saw something near the night table next to the bed. It was like a small notebook, almost like a diary.

"What are you doing, Ash, it's Gary's privacy! Just leave now before you regret it!" He said to himself but seconds after he found himself walking to the night table. He took a seat on the bed and took the small notebook. It didn't have the word "DIARY" on the cover, still he opened it and he laughed when he saw lots of scientific things he didn't understand at all.

In fact, he thanked God it wasn't a diary, he didn't want to want to read it. He left the notebook back where it was and Gary's cologne caught his attention. It was a blue small flask with a glass top or lid. It seemed very elegant and he could bet it smelled very nice. He opened it and approached the flask to his nose and smelled it.

It was a nice smell, elegant, enticing and somewhat seductive. It clearly didn't match Gary's personality at all but then again, he didn't know Gary liked astronomy or that he collected action figures, so maybe there was another side of Gary he didn't know, maybe a womanizing one.

He laughed at the thought of it, nah, Gary could never be the womanizing type of guy.

He was going to place the top of the flask back when his cellphone rang all of a sudden, he jumped in surprise and spilled some of the cologne on the night table and some more over himself, on his t-shirt and pants, Ash was trembling, the phone was still ringing. He left the flask back to the night table, used the sleeve of his shirt to clean his mess and left the room for good, closing the door, something he must have done since the very beginning instead of entering Gary's room. Then he got back to his room and answered his phone.

 **-o-**

The article Gary was reading was very interesting and quite groundbreaking, he was going to take some notes on his lab journal, a small notebook he used for taking all types of notes related to his research, when he remembered he had left it on his night table.

Thus, Gary left the lab and walked to the backyard, entered the kitchen, and then walked the two sets of stairs to his room. When he finished climbing the second set of stairs, he saw Ash going out of HIS room, but Ash didn't see him and then he entered his room. Ash seemed nervous and his shirt was wet.

Curious and a bit afraid of what Ash had been doing in his room, Gary walked to his room, opened the door, and took a look around, everything was the same as in the morning when he had left it, then he remembered he may have left the door opened because he was in a rush to get his grandfather from the airport. Maybe that was the reason Ash got in his room, because he saw the door open and curiosity killed him.

He walked to the night table and then he started smelling his cologne in the air, it was an intense smell, like if all the bottle had been spilled, then he looked cautiously to the night table and saw some liquid next to his small notebook, that was it, Ash had spilled his cologne and that's why his shirt was wet. He laughed remembering how nervous Ash looked. He went to the bathroom and took some toilet paper to clean Ash's mess. Then he took his lab journal and went out of the room.

Just as he got out of his room, Ash got out of his too. Now both of them were in the hall.

Ash was wearing another t-shirt, Gary could notice.

"Hey, Ash." Gary smiled trying to hide his laughter.

"Gary!" Ash almost jumped, too many surprises during the last few minutes.

Gary leaned closer to Ash and sniffed making some noise with his nose.

"Hey! You smell so good!" Gary said with a big smile, trying to make Ash feel uncomfortable. "Let's see," he said leaning even closer so his nose was now touching Ash's neck.

"It's a cologne that my mom gave me," Ash said taking two steps back, lying though he was almost sure Gary had noticed the spilled cologne on his night table. Ash was nervous and a little scared, he thought that Gary was going to yell at him for sneaking into his room.

"Really?" Gary asked skeptically. "It smells delicious" he smiled.

"Thanks," Ash said trying not to tremble.

"By the way, where are you going, Ashy-boy? Why did you need to change your clothes?" Gary asked with a smirk, and Ash's heart started to beat faster this time.

Gary was enjoying the moment, he knew Ash was uncomfortable and he loved it! He wasn't going to get away with sneaking into his room and spilling half of his favorite cologne!

"I'll go see Misty, see you tonight!" Ash couldn't handle it anymore and he said goodbye and ran to the stairs, leaving Gary alone in the hall.

But Ash had left the door to his room opened.

It was time for revenge. Gary smiled and entered Ash's room. He left his lab journal on the table near the door. Then he headed straight to the bathroom, he needed to verify something. In the laundry basket, he saw the t-shirt Ash was wearing before. He took it and smelled it putting it against his face.

He smelled Ash's t-shirt.

He could definitely sense his cologne.

He kept sniffing.

He smelled something else… something earthy.

Gary closed his eyes and he couldn't stop sniffing.

Something… salty... Ash's sweat.

The smell of his cologne disappeared, or maybe he managed to focus on the smells underneath… Ash's natural scent.

He opened his eyes and then he freaked out. He tossed the t-shirt back to the laundry basket and left Ash's room trying to forget everything that had happened, but he couldn't keep calm during the rest of the day, he couldn't because…

He had loved the smell underneath.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Ash walked to Pallet Town's bus station, it wasn't really that big, just a small waiting room with about 10 chairs for people to wait for their buses. He remembered there was a bus leaving for Viridian City every 30 minutes and one leaving for Cerulean City every hour. He was lucky to arrive 15 minutes before the bus left for Cerulean City. He purchased a cheap ticket and waited for the bus.

Meanwhile, he kept thinking on how a bad decision he had made, entering Gary's room without his permission. He felt guilty. Then he remembered the conversation he had with Gary and he was sure Gary knew about it, why else would he tease him with how good he smelt? He got goosebumps when he remembered Gary's nose touching his neck and decided to skip the thought for the moment. He focused on Misty, he was going to visit her at Cerulean City's gym.

He hadn't seen Misty in a very long time, he started to wonder if she had changed that much. She had always been taller than him, was she still? Or was now he taller than her? He wondered if her hair was still red-orange like carrots, and if she still had the same temper she always had. He laughed remembering the good old times with her and Brock.

Then he wondered about him, he wasn't sure if he was in Pewter City, he probably was still doing his studies to become a pokémon doctor, so he wasn't probably in Kanto. He wished he was, he really wanted to see him and Misty both, for the three of them to be together once again.

The bus came and he got in. During the ride, he kept remembering his journeys to Kanto and Johto with Brock and Misty.

He finally arrived at Cerulean City after 1 hour and 15 minutes.

He hadn't been there in years, he was worried that he wasn't going to remember the way to the gym but luckily, he did. He was surprised he did. He walked around 10 minutes from the bus station to the water type gym. When he opened the door, he saw nobody around in the reception, maybe Misty was having a battle right then. He got curious and walked past the door that lead to the giant pool that served as the field of the gym.

And he was right, there she was having a pokémon battle with a young trainer who was around 14 years old, a couple of years younger than he and Misty. She seemed taller than the last time he had seen her, her hair was redder now and her skin even whiter, and she was full of energy. That's the Misty he remembered.

He sat on one of the benches, remaining unnoticed and watched the rest of the fight.

Misty's pokémon were pretty strong, she sure had gotten stronger during the past few years. Suddenly he felt the urge to challenge her for a pokémon battle, and maybe he was going to, he really wanted to.

When the fight was over (Misty had won obviously) Ash stood up and clapped loud enough for Misty to notice him.

When she turned to him, her expression became lively, a huge smile appeared on her face, she recognized him even without his signature hat. She was standing on a platform over the pool and she was so excited she jumped to it and then swam to Ash's direction. Ash laughed to see her jumping into the water and he walked to the edge of the pool and helped her get out. She wasn't exactly wearing a bath suit but she didn't mind getting her clothes wet.

"Is it really you?" she asked him touching his hair with her wet hands.

"Yeah." Ash laughed, feeling the cold water on Misty's hands.

"Can I hug you?" she asked for permission to get his clothes wet.

"Of course!" Ash exclaimed and he hugged her, he didn't mind getting wet.

Misty laughed, she was so happy to see Ash again, and he was so happy to see Misty again too.

On the other side of the pool, the trainer was going down the platform and with a sad expression on his face, he was walking to the exit.

"Hey!" Misty exclaimed running to him, and Ash followed her.

The trainer stood still and waited for Misty.

"You did very well." Misty smiled at him.

"Thank you," he said but he didn't believe her entirely, his face was still sad.

"Hey buddy, what's your name?" Ash asked him with a smile.

"Sun," he answered, his face looking to the ground.

"Hey, Sun." Ash put his hand over Sun's shoulder. "You were good, believe me, Misty's a very tough trainer, you won't believe how many times she kicked my ass in the past." Ash laughed.

And sure, Sun laughed too. Now he looked directly to Ash. Misty was standing behind him with a smile.

"You have to keep trying, I'll tell you, I've been a trainer for years and not all the times I've been able to beat the gym leaders on my first try, you have to analyze their strategy, think of a better one for you and your pokémon, and then come back."

"Think of a better strategy," Sun repeated to himself.

"That's right, my friend." Ash smiled.

"Thank you, Ash, and thank you too, Misty. I promise I'll get stronger and beat you next time!" Sun exclaimed full of energy and Ash smiled because Sun reminded him of himself when he was younger.

"I'll wait for that," Misty said with a smile.

"You're welcome, Sun." Ash smiled too.

Sun said his goodbyes and he left, now feeling much better. Now, Misty and Ash were finally alone.

"You're very good with them, I have no doubt you'll be the best pokémon master ever," Misty said proudly.

Ash blushed. "I just know how they must feel, that's all." He touched his hair trying to focus Misty's eyes on it instead on his cheeks.

Misty giggled. "Why don't we swim in the pool for a while?" She asked.

"Really? But I didn't bring my bath suit."

"You don't really need one," she said pushing him to the pool.

"Misty!" he exclaimed too late, in a second he was already in the pool. "Man! This water is so cold!" He shouted, his body trembling.

Misty laughed. "I'll go to the reception to close the gym for the time being, just to make sure nobody interrupts us." She smirked.

Misty left and Ash's body quickly adapted to the cold water, now it felt warm against his skin. He took his t-shirt off and tossed it to the edge of the pool. He wanted to take his jeans too but maybe that was not going to be appropriate. He swam to the other side of the pool, waiting for Misty to return.

She got back in two minutes. "Hey!" she exclaimed running to the pool and then jumping into it.

Ash swam to get closer to her. "You're crazy." He laughed.

"Hey, you took your t-shirt off, nice!" She laughed.

He blushed and tried to change the topic. "So, how long do you swim in here?"

"Pretty much every day," she revealed. "Hey, how about a race from one side of the pool to the other side and back?" She challenged him.

"I'm in!" Ash said with lots of energy and they both swam to the nearest side of the pool to start the race.

 **-o-**

Ash and Misty finally got out of the pool after an hour. Misty lend Ash a towel to dry himself. When he was done, he put his t-shirt back on (even though his jeans were still wet but that wasn't a problem to him). Misty's clothes were also all wet and she didn't mind. She used a towel to get them as dry as possible.

Now they were sitting on a bench near the entrance to the pool area.

"So, what brings you here? I have to say I'm quite surprised with your visit," Misty said.

Ash understood that as a way to remind him that he hadn't contacted her in a very long time. "I know," he sighed. "I just… I just needed a break from everything and I wanted to see my old friends again," he added.

She knew about Ash's defeat in the Kalos League finale, she understood him, and she was wise enough not to bring that topic up.

"How long are you staying?" she asked instead.

"About a month, you won't believe where I'm staying," he said in a proud kind of way.

"You're not staying in your house?" she asked surprised.

"No," he said no more.

"What? Where are you staying?" She had definitely no idea.

"Guess! It's very easy." He giggled.

"I don't know, are you staying at Brock's place?" It was the only thing she could think.

"Not really, but now that you bring that up, is he in Pewter?"

"Yeah, I saw him about two months ago, we're still in touch with each other." She smiled.

Ash's eyes sparkled once more. "That's awesome, Misty! I want to see him too!"

"We'll call him." She smiled. "But first you have to tell me where the hell you are staying!"

Ash laughed and he had to answer this time. "At the Oak mansion."

"Say what?" She jumped to her surprise.

"My mom is remodeling our house and she's been staying in the mansion for a while, it's a very nice place, so spacious, so comfortable, so elegant, I feel like I'm living in a luxury hotel."

"Is Gary there?"

Ash felt nervous, remembering the incident in the morning.

"Yes, but he's too focused on his research, we're not that close anyway." Somehow, saying those words hurt him.

"Well, it's his loss, I'd be very excited if you were living for a month in my house." She smiled. "Alright, let's give Brock a call, shall we?" she asked standing up.

"Yeah!" Ash said standing up and he followed Misty to the reception.

"Oh, right, is..." She turned to Ash half the way to the reception. "Is Tracey there too?" she asked kind of nervous but not enough for Ash to notice.

"Not really… now that you've mentioned it… it's odd… I thought he lived there," Ash said confused.

"Well, he was still living there around a month ago… could you please ask Gary and tell me? It's just… Tracey and I are good friends and I haven't heard from him since then, maybe he went back to the Orange Islands."

"Sure, I will ask him, Tracey's my friend too." Ash smiled.

 **-o-**

Misty turned on the enormous TV screen that was in the reception.

"Wait, we're going to videocall him?" he asked eyes opened.

"Why not?" She laughed and she clicked on some stuff on the screen, too complicated for Ash to understand, but he could understand a column on the right of the screen that was labeled as _recent calls_ that showed the name of the person she had called, the time of the call and the duration of the call.

Ash's eyes grew bigger when he saw that most of those recent calls were from/to one person: May

"Wait! You've recently called May?" Ash asked surprised.

"Yeah, we became really good friends since we met in Hoenn." Misty smiled setting the video-call, now it was just about time for Brock to pick up and appear on the screen.

"That's awesome! How's she doing?" Ash asked very curious about her friend.

"She just arrived to Hearthome City three days ago, she's there for a Pokémon Coordinator Gala" Misty revealed.

"That sounds amazing! I'm so happy for her," Ash sighed, remembering her and missing her.

Brock finally appeared on the screen.

"Hey Misty! Oh, Ash! Hi there, my friend!" Brock was wearing his lab coat, like Gary's, but he used it for another reason, because he was a pokémon doctor, not a pokémon researcher. He also seemed to be in a lab, did he have his own lab in Pewter City now?

"Our friend here is staying for a month at Pallet, and he wants us three to be together again, what do you think?"

"I love that idea!" Ash could swear he saw Brock's eyes opening.

"He's staying at the Oak mansion, can you believe it?"

They talked for some more time, about an hour, before Brock had to leave, it was nice, Ash finally knew what his best friends had been doing these years, and the three of them talking… it felt just like the good old times.

Brock said he had a busy week but soon after that, he would make sure to have the rest of the month available to spend the most time he could with Ash and Misty. Misty said she also needed to get some stuff done and that she would ask one of her sisters to take care of the gym for the rest of the month too.

Brock and Misty agreed on visiting Ash on Pallet Town the next Friday, in a few days, though somehow, Ash felt it was going to feel like an eternity.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

When Ash got back to the Oak mansion that night, he knew things would be different… somehow.

Ash had spent all day with Misty, he didn't mind looking for his mother, he only knew she was in Cerulean City too but he knew she would be fine, besides, she had to come back to Pallet Town and check how the builders were doing their job on the house.

He still was shocked by the idea of his mother wanting a pool. He couldn't stop laughing at the thought of it.

He got late to the Oak mansion, it was already midnight, he had taken the last bus from Cerulean to Pallet. He had eaten dinner with Misty, so he was just going to say hi to everyone, talk for a few minutes to his mother and then go straight to bed.

"Ash, where have you been all day?" his mom opened the door to the mansion, a worried expression on her face.

"Relax, I was just with Misty, in Cerulean City." Ash smiled.

"You were there too?" she asked surprised.

"Yup. How's the house going?"

She closed the door and both walked to the living room. "It's going to be lovely, very lovely, you're going to love it!" She was still very excited about it, and now Ash was starting to get excited about it too, like now he wanted to make some changes to his bedroom, but he'd wait until he saw the remodeled house.

They talked for a few minutes, just the two of them. Professor Oak and Gary had probably gone to sleep already.

"I think I'll go to sleep, I had a very tiring day." Ash yawned.

"I think I'll do that too." Delia joined her son and they walked up the stairs together.

Delia turned off the lights of the living room on their way up to the second floor. Ash left his mom in her room and she gave her son a goodnight kiss and a hug, then he took the other stairs to the third floor.

As he walked the hall to his room, he remembered the awkward moment he had that morning with Gary, he was hoping that Gary wasn't angry at him. He even considered knocking on Gary's door and talking to him, even asking him to watch a movie together, but he really was tired and he was positive Gary had taken the incident of the cologne as a funny one, so Ash went straight to his room, took a shower, and then went to bed.

 **-o-**

Gary had had a very tiring day as well, he had a lot of work to do with his grandpa. Professor Oak was going to go to a congress the next week and he would give a seminar called _"Pokémon Research: Nowadays and the Future"_ so Gary was going to be helping him prepare all week until Friday, when Samuel would leave to Goldenrod City.

The work load was good for Gary, at least he convinced himself of that. He wanted to avoid every thought of what had happened that morning with Ash, the incident about Ash entering his room and spilling his cologne over himself would have been a funny one to remember if and only if Gary hadn't entered Ash's room to smell his t-shirt just to fully convince himself that Ash had spilled his cologne over himself.

He liked smelling Ash's t-shirt and he knew it wasn't because of his cologne.

" _There's nothing to worry about… it's just a t-shirt,"_ Gary would tell himself throughout the day but his efforts would only convince him more of the opposite: that was something to worry about.

Every time he closed his eyes, he would see Ash wearing only that t-shirt… only. Thank Arceus that the t-shirt was long enough to cover Ash's… intimate parts.

Gary would open his eyes immediately and try not to think about those wild thoughts. He would even ask his grandpa to give him more and more tasks to do.

" _What the hell are you thinking, Oak?"_ Gary would ask himself, terrified, grabbing his hairs with his hands, almost pulling them.

It was a relief Ash had gone out all day, that meant Gary wouldn't see him at lunch and at dinner at least, he still enclosed himself in the lab all day, just to avoid any contact with Ash, that way whatever feelings he was developing for him would disappear in the blink of an eye, wouldn't they?

But when he blinked his eyes again, he saw Ash again, wearing the same t-shirt, only the t-shirt and laughing, putting Gary's cologne on him and jumping over Gary's bed.

" _Snap out of it, Oak!"_ He would yell at himself inside his mind.

When he finally went to bed, he tried to sleep and hope for everything to be better the next day.

But he couldn't sleep. He was scared, he was scared that he might be feeling something forbidden for Ash… Ash? A guy?

" _What the hell is going on with me?"_ He asked himself as he tried to bury his face under his pillow.

He breathed in. He breathed out.

It didn't work.

Gary liked girls. He had dated two or three. He had gone to actual dates with girls. He had kissed them. Cheeks, mouth, neck. So, why was he having those thoughts about his childhood friend?

" _It's just a phase, it's just a phase, he'll be the same pathetic loser he's always been to you tomorrow."_ He tried to convince himself with logic.

He breathed in. He breathed out.

It didn't work.

There was one thing he was sure about: he needed to avoid Ash until those weird feelings disappeared, even if it took him all month Ash was staying.

 **-o-**

The next day, Tuesday, Gary woke up early enough to make sure he wouldn't see Ash during breakfast. Miss Ketchum hadn't made anything for breakfast yet, it was still too early, so Gary had some cereal and then he went straight to the lab, where he would remain the whole day.

He hoped that again, Ash would be out all day.

 **-o-**

When Ash woke up and went to the kitchen to have some breakfast, he saw his mom making omelets! From the table, he could see the lab, he wondered if Gary was already there.

"Did Gary have breakfast already?" Ash asked curious.

"Yeah," his mother sighed. "He woke up earlier than me and he had some cereal." She was sad because she loved everyone enjoying her food.

"I see."

Maybe Gary had a lot of work to do.

Professor Oak then joined them and now Ash thought that maybe Gary was mad at him.

Ash made sure to finish his omelet before professor Oak, so he could go to the lab and talk to Gary alone. After doing his dishes and thanking his mom for the delicious breakfast, he went out of the kitchen and into the lab.

Gary was typing, it was the only sound that filled up the entire lab.

Tap tap tap.

"Hey," Ash said a bit nervous, with both his hands in his pockets.

He walked slowly towards Gary, who seemed not to notice him.

"Gary," Ash said again.

"What do you want, Ketchum?" Gary didn't even look at him, he just kept typing and looking at his computer screen.

He was mad, he was definitely mad at him for what had happened the day before.

"Do you want to… do something today?" Ash thought that maybe by spending some time together, he would properly apologize and things would be back to normal.

Tap tap tap.

"I'm busy, can't you see it?"

"Yeah," Ash said.

Tap tap tap.

Tap tap tap.

"I'll see you at lunch, okay?" Ash asked hoping that at least they could bond during lunch, he would tell a joke that would make Gary laugh and then he would tell him how sorry he was and things would go back to normal.

"I don't know… I have so much work load that I might eat here."

"I could keep you company." Ash smiled even though Gary wasn't looking at him.

"Don't. Please don't. Just go, Ash."

"But…"

"Just go!"

No more taps.

Gary closed his eyes. He breathed in. He breathed out.

"Fine." Ash kept smiling to hide his sadness. "I'm sorry," he finally said it.

"Ash, just leave me alone, I seriously need to get this done by today. And I have lots of things to do tomorrow, and the day after that, and the rest of the week… just stop bothering me!"

He didn't even listen to his apology. He was bothering Gary and that hurt him. "Okay… good luck!" Ash smiled and walked out of the lab.

"I'm such an idiot!" Gary threw his face against the keyboard… sobbing.

 **-o-**

Ash would go visit Misty but she was busy. He would go visit Brock but he was busy too. He practically didn't have anywhere to go. He could go with his mom to their house and check on the builders, that would have been a funny thing to do but he didn't even feel like doing it. He would play with his pokémon all day but then again, he didn't have the energy to do it so.

Gary had made it clear, he didn't want to be friends with Ash anymore. Ash had never lost a friend before… that's why he was feeling down. And Gary wasn't just a regular friend, he was his oldest friend, he wasn't just anybody.

Tuesday. Wednesday. Thursday. He spent the three days all by himself, in his room, waiting for Friday to come, waiting for Misty and Brock to visit him, and make him feel good, make him feel cared, important, happy.

He hadn't seen Gary since their encounter at the lab that Tuesday morning. He didn't even know professor Oak was going to leave for a congress. Since his mom spent most of the day at their house, she didn't notice Ash had stayed all day in his room, he only left it to eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner, when Gary didn't show up.

He wasn't hungry most of the times, Ash had never felt something like that, he loved food, he loved eating! But still, he made sure to eat everything his mom made for him, she knew him so well that she would notice something was wrong with him if he didn't eat all the food on his plate.

 **-o-**

Friday finally came. Misty and Brock had called the night before and made sure that they would arrive to the Oak mansion before 9:00am so they could have breakfast together. Ash woke up, took a shower, and got dressed. He didn't notice he was wearing the same t-shirt he was wearing the day he got into Gary's room without his permission, maybe because now it was clean and didn't smell like Gary's cologne.

When Ash went down the stairs, someone knocked the door, it was probably Misty and Brock arriving just on time. Ash ran to the door and opened it with a lot of excitement, and indeed, it was Brock and Misty.

"Brock!" Ash exclaimed hugging his best friend who now was a lot taller than him.

"Hey!" Brock laughed.

Ash did the same with Misty even though he had seen her three days ago.

"We're finally together, the three of us! The original trio!" Ash exclaimed overly excited.

"Original trio?" Misty asked with a laugh.

"You know, you were the first people who traveled with me, you're two of my oldest friends." Ash smiled holding back his tears.

"Oh, he's going to cry, Brock, he's going to cry!" Misty teased.

"Oh my! Look who we have here!" Delia said very happy to see Brock and Misty again.

"Delia, you look so radiant," Misty said hugging her.

"You're so much younger every time we see you," Brock complimented her.

"Now I remember why I love you two so much." Delia giggled. "Brock, could you help me with breakfast?"

"That'd be an honor, Delia" Brock said with his hand on his heart, like a total gentleman.

Delia laughed and she and Brock went to the kitchen.

"Wow! This place sure is elegant, and huge!" Misty exclaimed looking all around the place. "I can't believe you get to live here for a month!" She said a little bit jealous.

"Well, it doesn't have the amazing pool you have in your gym" Ash said.

"Yeah, it surely is amazing," Misty said proudly. "By the way, did you find out about where Tracey is?" She asked curious.

Ash hadn't had the chance to ask Gary that information because well, Gary wasn't speaking to him at all. He could have asked professor Oak or even his mother, but the way he was feeling during the last few days made him forget about it.

"Oh yeah, I… I forgot," Ash apologized.

"Oh, well, it doesn't matter, I'm sure he will call me anytime soon." She smiled a bit nervous.

"Is something wrong?" Ash asked, confused.

"No, not at all," Misty said walking to the kitchen to avoid the topic.

Ash decided to join his mom, Misty and Brock in the kitchen. He seated in front of the small table with Misty while Brock and Delia were making breakfast. Delia was cutting lots of different fruits while Brock was making something a pie. They were having a great time.

"Where's professor Oak?" Brock asked as he put the pie in the oven.

"He left early, he has a congress in Goldenrod City, Gary took him to the airport one hour ago," Delia informed.

"A congress?" Ash asked surprised. He had no idea about it but then again, he hadn't spoken to professor Oak during the last days.

"You know he's a busy man," Delia replied.

"So basically, you have this huge mansion for just the two of you," Misty said excited.

"And Gary," Delia added.

"Yeah but I bet that nerd spends most of his day in his lab." Misty laughed.

Everyone laughed, even Delia.

"He's a very nice guy, he just finds it hard to make new friends," Delia commented. "That's why I'm very happy Ash is staying here, I'm sure Ash will do so much good to Gary, right?" She asked looking to Ash.

"Yeah." Ash faked a smile, inside he was just feeling guilty for everything that had happened so far with Gary.

When breakfast was done, they ate Brock's apple pie and Delia's fruit cocktail. Everything was delicious.

After that, Brock, Misty, and Ash spent all day together in Pallet Town. They visited the small plaza in the middle of town, then they went to the Pallet Town hills, the nearby forest, and Pallet Town's lake.

They then took a bus to Viridian City (which was just 20 minutes away) and they spent the afternoon in the cinema and then they went bowling.

When it was finally night time, they went to a famous pizza place Brock had heard about and ate two pizzas among the three of them.

The original trio had an amazing reunion. They had had the time of their lives.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Ash entered the mansion. He was all smiles. He had spent all day with Misty and Brock. He left them at the bus station and they said they'd come visit the next day.

The first thing Ash saw when he got in was that his mother was going up the stairs with a silver tray and what it seemed to be a bowl of soup.

"Mom?" Ash asked and she stopped going up the stairs around halfway.

"Ash! Dinner's ready! I'll join you in a few minutes." She smiled and continued walking up the stairs.

"Wait! What's with that tray?" He asked curious, walking to the stairs.

"It's chicken soup for Gary." She smiled.

"Chicken soup for Gary?" Ash asked confused.

"Yes, he went to the doctor this afternoon because he was feeling sick and when he got back, he went straight to bed. I'll just go see how he is feeling now." Delia smiled and continued her way up to Gary's room.

Gary was sick? Ash was worried about him. He knew Gary didn't want to see him but he didn't care, he knew how lonely Gary must have been feeling, being alone and sick in his room. So, Ash followed his mother to Gary's room without her noticing.

 **-o-**

When Delia opened the door to Gary's room, he was coughing intensely. He was lying in his bed, covered with a few sheets.

"Oh my, Gary, you look worse than you did this afternoon," Delia asked worried, leaving the silver tray on the night table. "You've taken your medicines?" She asked worried.

"Yes," he answered with a few coughs.

"Sit, so you can drink this soup, it will do you good."

"Delia, I'm not hungry," he laid his face against the pillow.

"I know that you're not hungry, because if you were hungry then you wouldn't be sick." She smiled putting all the pillows behind Gary, thus helping him lay his back on them and sitting him on his bed, then she covered him up to his waist with the blankets. "You have to eat something, you can't go to bed with an empty stomach."

Gary kept coughing. His face was paler than usual. Delia grabbed the silver tray and carefully placed it over the blankets.

"What's that?" Gary complained touching his forehead.

"Do you want me to help you?" Delia asked grabbing the spoon and putting a napkin on Gary's chest.

"Delia, I'm not a baby, please," he said grabbing the spoon by himself.

"I know that you're not a baby." She smiled. "Please, eat it."

"Okay, okay." Gary left the spoon on the tray and placed his hand on his forehead again, closing his eyes.

Ash had been listening everything from outside the room and in that moment, he got in.

"Excuse me." Delia smiled at Ash and left the room, closing the door.

"You look awful," Ash said and Gary opened his eyes immediately, he hadn't noticed Ash coming in.

Gary just looked at him, he was too tired and too sick to ask him to leave.

Ash walked closer to the bed. "Oh God! You're all sweaty," Ash said worried about a fever and then he touched Gary's neck and forehead for a few seconds. "Gary! You're burning in fever," Ash said with a lot of concern in his eyes.

Ash took the silver tray and placed it again on the night table.

Gary kept coughing.

"Okay, come here," Ash said taking all the blankets covering Gary and throwing them to the floor.

Then he sat on the bed.

"Let's get rid of this," Ash said hugging Gary and slowly taking off his t-shirt.

"What are you doing, Ash?" Gary said with his eyes closed as he let Ash take off his t-shirt.

"You have a fever, you can't have all these blankets and stuff over you. You need to refresh," Ash said walking to the door and turning on the air conditioner and decreasing its temperature.

Gary kept coughing as he placed the pillows to his sides and he was finally lying on bed again.

Ash sat on the bed again and took Gary's t-shirt. With the t-shirt, he started to clean and dry the sweat on Gary's chest.

"Hey." Gary stopped Ash by grabbing his wrist with his hand.

But Ash didn't stop, Gary didn't resist and Ash kept drying Gary's sweat with his t-shirt.

For the first time, Ash saw and appreciated Gary's bare chest… it was tanned… and it looked good, sexy. Sure, it didn't look like those ones on magazine covers… but Gary's chest was still more defined than his chest.

"You're so sweaty," Ash said drying Gary's face and they looked eyes to eyes for a few seconds.

The room was so silent after that, Gary could swear he could listen to his heartbeat and his breathings. Ash stopped drying Gary and left the t-shirt on the other side of the bed. They were still exchanging glances.

Gary felt like he would burst any minute now while Ash was discovering a new feeling.

Ash was scared too, but not as terrified as Gary had been when he liked smelling Ash's t-shirt.

Then Ash looked down to Gary's chest for a few more seconds. Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. Gary closed his eyes, trying to resist the urge to take Ash into his arms, but then again, he was too tired and too sick to do anything.

"Okay, now you have to eat," Ash finally spoke. He helped Gary sit on his bed and then he took the silver tray and put it on Gary's bare chest.

"It's cold." Gary closed his eyes, referring to the tray, and he shook his body a little.

Ash smiled. "My mom is right, you have to eat something." He gave Gary the spoon.

Gary placed the spoon on the bowl and tasted the soup. "This thing is boiling… it's going to make my body heat up more." Gary closed his eyes, coughed, and left the spoon on the bowl. "So, no thanks." He pushed the silver tray so Ash could take it away.

"Well, I'm going to make you a remedy… that I know it's going to be great for you," Ash said "And you'll be healed very fast." He smiled.

"You? You're going to make me a remedy?" Gary asked with a small grin on his face.

"Well, you're getting your sense of humor back, it's a good sign." Ash smiled. "And believe it or not, I have my secrets in the kitchen, after all, I am my mother's son," Ash said proudly.

Gary coughed and laughed at the same time.

"Drink the soup, please. I'll be back with the remedy in no second." Ash stood up and left Gary's room, closing the door behind him.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Ash… what the hell are you doing to me?" Gary told himself as he tried to drink the soup.

 **-o-**

Delia was waiting for Ash in the kitchen for them to have dinner together.

"Did he eat the soup?" Delia asked curious.

"He's on it." Ash smiled. "Mom, do we have tomatoes, lemons, honey and butter?" He asked curious.

"I think so, why?" Delia asked curious, she walked to the refrigerator and she took all those things out of the fridge.

"Gary's awful, I think the medication they gave him isn't quite working, I know of a remedy that will help him get better," Ash said turning on the stove.

"A remedy?" Delia asked genuinely interested.

"Cilan made it for me one time that I got really sick, we weren't close to any town, I think that remedy saved my life." Ash confessed.

"Oh my!" Delia exclaimed surprised. "You better share that recipe with me," Delia said with a smile, she loved everything related to cooking, she loved collecting recipes in her mind.

"Alright" Ash smiled putting a frying pan on the stove and then he put some butter on the frying pan, waiting for it to melt. "Is it okay we do this first and then eat dinner?" He asked a little worried.

"Sure, I really want to learn the recipe of this remedy," she said smiling and excited. "Can I help you with something?"

"Yeah, please help me dice two tomatoes," Ash said still melting the butter.

"Sure!" Delia smiled and she washed the tomatoes and then started cutting them just as Ash told her to.

"Okay, so the recipe is very easy, I'm melting the butter here, once the tomato dices are done, we fry them with the butter and then we add three spoons of honey, we mix everything and finally, we add the juice of a quarter of a lemon," Ash said proudly.

"Nice!" Delia exclaimed as she quickly diced the tomatoes.

 **-o-**

With the remedy, finally ready on a cup, Ash walked up the stairs as her mom decided to make some orange juice for them to drink with dinner.

Ash opened the door of Gary's room and he happily got in.

"Alright, now it's time to get better," Ash said sitting on Gary's bed with the remedy on hand.

"My head… my head is going to explode," Gary said putting his hands on his forehead.

"Drink this, it's a recipe of a friend of mine and I assure you, my friend, you'll get better immediately." Ash smiled handing Gary the cup.

Gary gave Ash the cup. "Can you give it to me?" He asked tired. "Just… don't spill it on me like you did with my cologne on you," he joked a little.

Ash smiled. That joke meant they were good. Ash felt better then.

"Sure." Ash took the cup and put it close to Gary's mouth.

Ash put his hand on Gary's chest, feeling the warm of it, as with the other hand he held the cup close to Gary's mouth.

"Okay, open your mouth." Ash smiled.

Gary did it so and as he drank the remedy he looked at Ash, who was looking at him. They began exchanging looks again.

Gary's heart beat faster this time. Silence got back between them. It was a small cup but Gary made sure to drink it slowly so the moment could last a little bit more… he did this unconsciously.

When Gary finished it, Ash smiled proudly like he knew Gary would get better because of him. He put the cup on the night table where the silver tray with the empty bowl was.

"How's it?" Ash asked curious.

"It… it doesn't taste bad," Gary said surprised.

"See? That's the secret." Ash smiled. "Cilan made sure to make a delicious remedy so everyone would drink it," he revealed.

Gary smiled.

Ash noticed that just a few drops had spilled over Gary's chest, he didn't think it enough and he used his hands to clean them.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. He looked at Ash who was now looking to the side, nervous and embarrassed.

Ash froze realizing what he had done. Then he took a napkin and cleaned Gary's lips.

The tension between them arose and both of them stayed quiet, just looking at each other and breathing.

"You should sleep now," Ash said standing up and taking the silver tray. "You will feel better when you wake up tomorrow morning." He smiled.

"Thank… you, Ash," Gary said closing his eyes.

"Sleep well, Gary," Ash said leaving the room and closing the door.

"Man…" Gary sighed. "I am fucked… so fucked," Gary told himself as he closed his eyes and laid his head over the pillow.

 **-o-**

He opened his eyes hours later. He didn't know how much he had slept. It could have been just an hour or it could already be morning. He looked to the window and the sky was dark, but that didn't answer his question. It could just be still night of the same day or very early in the next one.

One thing he was sure of, he was feeling better... a lot better.

The headache and the fever were gone. His body temperature was now normal, maybe a bit lower than the average because of the cold in his room, he immediately turned off the air conditioning.

He got out of bed and put on a clean t-shirt. He walked to the mirror and looked at himself. He still looked the same, physically speaking, but there was something… something else.

"Gary Oak… what the hell is happening to you?" He laughed… but it wasn't a pure laugh… it was a laugh infected with fear.

Now he was hungry which sort of gave him the thought it was around 3:00am when he usually had a snack. He got out of his room and went down the stairs to the second floor and then to the first floor. As he was walking down the stairs to the living room, he saw Ash sleeping on the sofa.

Then Delia got out of the kitchen after she had turned off the lights of that room.

"Gary!" She exclaimed surprised.

"Hi, Delia." Gary smiled and he even gave her a hug.

"Wow! You sure look better, so much better." She smiled.

"It was all thanks to Ash's remedy," Gary said looking to Ash, sleeping peacefully on the sofa.

"He was pretty worried about you, I may confess," Delia sighed.

Gary felt like he had blushed though there was no evidence on his cheeks.

"He's not my little baby anymore, I can't take him to his room, carrying him in my arms," Delia sighed looking at her son.

"Yeah," Gary sighed with a smile.

"I'm glad you're feeling better, still, don't stop taking your medication," she said putting her hand on Gary's shoulder.

"I promise I won't."

"Good. Don't forget to turn off the lights before you go back to your room," Delia said as she took the stairs and disappeared.

Before going to the kitchen, he walked to the living room and sat in a couch across from the sofa Ash's was sleeping on.

Ash was sleeping peacefully.

Gary looked at him for a few minutes.

Then Gary stood up and walked closer to Ash… he didn't know how he ended up on his knees in front of Ash.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash's eyes were closed. He was still sleeping.

Gary leaned closer… and closer… and closer.

Gary closed his eyes. He was trembling, his hands were shaking and sweating. He was following his impulses rather than his logic.

He leaned even closer.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Gary's lips were just an inch away from Ash's lips.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The window creaked.

The window made creaking noises.

The noises took Gary by surprise and he got up, his lips getting further away from Ash's. They never touched.

Gary laughed when he realized he had just gotten scared of some wind hitting the windows of the living room. The noises must have been loud enough because at that moment, Ash opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw: Gary standing up next to him.

"Hi." Gary smiled trying to keep calm. He was burning up inside, realizing that moments ago, his lips were almost touching Ash's.

"Hi." Ash smiled. "Are you… are you feeling better?" He asked sitting on the sofa as Gary sat on the couch across from him.

"Yeah… I feel… perfect… the remedy you made for me… sorry, the magic potion you made for me." He laughed and Ash too. "It worked!"

"I told you, it's miraculous," Ash said very proudly.

"It is." Gary smiled. "I was going to the kitchen, I'm kinda hungry," Gary said a bit blushed.

"That's a good symptom, my mother says that when the sick is hungry, he isn't that sick anymore." Ash got up and smiled. "Let me make you something."

"No, Ash please, I'll… I'll just take some apple pie."

"What? No, that's just dessert, you need to eat something before that."

"Ash, I insist, I want you to go to sleep before you're not feeling sleepy anymore." Gary Oak was trembling… he was nervous… but why?

"You still doubt of my cooking skills?" Ash laughed.

"No, it's not that… Ash…"

"C'mon, I want to help you." Ash ignored Gary and walked to the kitchen. Gary followed him, surrendering to the Ketchum charm.

"Ash, please, you don't need to do this for me, you've done enough for me today," Gary said as they entered the kitchen.

Ash didn't turn the lights on. Neither did Gary.

"Don't be stubborn!" Ash laughed turning to face Gary but in the dark, they couldn't see much of each other.

Ash then walked to the fridge and opened it. The fridge lights were now everything that illuminated the kitchen.

"Let's see what we've got here," Ash said analyzing everything in the fridge.

Gary stood behind Ash… close enough to smell his hair but not that close for Ash to feel Gary's breath. Gary closed his eyes.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash's hair… it smelt so good.

Something was flowing through Gary's body… heat, but not the heat that had given him fever hours ago, this was a different kind of heat.

"What about a sandwich?" Ash asked still focusing his eyes on the fridge.

Gary stepped back from Ash and opened his eyes.

" _What do you think you're doing, Oak?"_ Gary asked himself, putting his hands on his face, like he was regretting what he had just done.

"Delicious," Gary said to Ash's proposal about a sandwich.

"So, how do you like it? With lettuce? Ham? Tomato? Cheese? Avocado? Onion?" Ash asked as he made sure all those ingredients were in the fridge.

"Whatever you want to put on it… it would be perfect," Gary sighed trying to control himself… but control himself of doing what?

"Alright." Ash smiled. "Here's the lettuce, the tomato, the onion," he said giving Gary one of each. "Here's the ham and the cheese," he said giving them to Gary too. "And the avocado, I'm sure I saw the bread right next to the toaster this morning." He smiled.

Gary's hands were full of the ingredients. Ash laughed.

"I'm going to turn on the lights," Ash said.

Ash turned on the lights and Gary left the ingredients on the kitchen bar table.

"Can you hand me the knife, please? Oh! And the bread," Ash said as he washed the vegetables.

Gary didn't say anything. Like an obedient puppy, he walked to grab the knife and the bread, and then he returned to the table with them.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Ash… this is not necessary… I… I can make me a sandwich on my own," he said closing his eyes.

"No, don't worry Gary, I'll make it for you, do you want one or two? Or maybe three?" Ash smiled.

Gary breathed in and then he breathed out.

"I told you that I can do it for myself, Ash!" Gary yelled.

He wasn't angry… he was scared… scared of how he was feeling for Ash lately… he thought that by acting like a jerk, Ash would leave him alone and then, in his loneliness, he could finally eradicate his feelings for him.

"You're… you're so rude… and mean… and unpolite!" Ash exclaimed hurt… he was just trying to make Gary feel better but then he thought what Gary needed was not a sandwich… what he needed were some modals… and a class on how to treat people right."

Ash walked out of the kitchen, trying not to cry.

"Good night," Gary said feeling sorry of what he had just done.

"Yeah." Ash said angrily as he took the stairs to his room.

"I'm such an idiot" Gary dropped his face to the table. "What is going on with me? God! What's happening to me?"

 **-o-**

The next day, Saturday, was a quiet day in the mansion. Ash would spend the day with Misty and Brock, that would help his mind get away from what had happened the night before with Gary and how rude he had been to him.

But why? Why had Gary acted like such a jerk? It didn't make sense to Ash, after all, it was mostly thanks to him that Gary was feeling better, Ash knew it was his remedy and not those stupid medicines that made Gary recover so quickly.

So then, why did Gary acted like such an idiot when Ash had been all but nice to him?

Ash had eaten breakfast with his mom. Gary didn't show up for breakfast and he knew he wasn't in the lab yet. That meant Gary was still in his room.

"Do you think he's feeling sick again?" Delia asked her son.

"I don't think so, he was feeling pretty great last night."

"Oh! So you saw him when he went to the kitchen to eat something," Delia said surprised.

"Yep," Ash said nothing more. Delia could see her son was mad about something.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

"No," Ash lied.

"Alright… whenever you want to talk about it… you know your mother will always be here for you." She smiled.

"Thanks, mom." Ash smiled.

 **-o-**

But he wanted to talk about it with Gary. He needed to know why he was being such a jerk to him. Did he not want to be friends with him anymore?

He entered Gary's room when he saw the door opened. Gary was standing in front of the window. He was facing the street from that window.

Ash walked silently towards Gary.

Gary saw Ash's reflection on the window and he turned to face him.

Silence made its way between them. They exchanged looks for a few seconds. Gary began feeling that heat again, Ash was now in his room, they were alone… again.

But would he act like a jerk again this time?

"What are you doing here… in my room… Ash?"

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I just…" Ash was nervous. "I just want to…"

Ash walked closer to Gary with his arm lifted.

"What are you doing?" Gary asked trembling.

"Calm down, Gary." Ash smiled. "I just wanna check if you're okay, that's all." Ash slowly made his hand reach and touch Gary's forehead.

Ash's hand was cold. Gary closed his eyes. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Gary then opened his eyes, Ash was touching him. His forehead. Then he touched his neck. And then he touched his face. There was concern in Ash's face. Ash's cold hands felt so good. Gary knew that if Ash kept doing that for one more second, he would regret the outcome.

"Ash… I…" Gary said pulling away from Ash. "I don't need you to babysit me… I'm not a baby," he said in a cool tone, trying not to sound like the night before.

Ash didn't say anything this time. Gary returned to the window and kept looking to the street. He was hoping Ash would leave eventually. But Ash still didn't have his answer, sure, Gary hadn't acted like a jerk then… but he was still unsure about how things were between them.

Ash walked and he stood behind Gary. He looked to the street too.

And he saw Misty and Brock getting out of a cab.

"They're here!" Ash exclaimed, suddenly forgetting everything, and he left Gary's room without saying goodbye.

Gary closed his eyes and pretty much did the same as he did the night before when Ash left.

 **-o-**

Gary stood near the window long enough until he saw Ash leave with Misty and Brock. Ash turned to see him and they exchanged glances again. Ash smiled. Gary smiled too and he even waved Ash goodbye. Ash did the same.

Gary was ready to go downstairs to eat something until Delia entered his room. She had breakfast in the same silver tray she had brought the day before, to give him chicken soup.

But Delia… she looked… devastated.

"Are you okay, Delia?" Gary asked worried.

Delia left the silver tray on the night table and sat on Gary's bed.

Suddenly, Delia started crying.

"Delia, what's going on?" Gary sat next to her.

Delia kept crying.

"Delia, please calm down, hey, hey." He cleaned her tears. "Whatever is happening… don't let it affect you."

"How am I going to calm down? That woman… she speaks to me like she has something to tell me whenever she calls or whenever she comes… she makes me feel like I'm… like I'm…" Delia said among her intense cries.

"Hey, hey, hey." Gary hugged her. "What did she tell you? Why are you so upset?" He asked worried.

"It's not what she tells me… it's what she doesn't tell me what bothers me the most!" Delia exclaimed angrily between her tears. "Did you tell her anything?" She asked Gary.

"What? What am I going to tell her? About our secret?" Gary asked confused.

"Yes!" She exclaimed mortified.

"Delia, you know I would never do that," Gary said a little bit offended. "I already told you that your secret is safe with me."

"Then, what's going on with her? What have I done to her to treat me like that?" Delia stood up and kept crying.

"Delia, please, don't take it personal, maybe she was just kidding," Gary said standing up and walking to her.

"No, she's just mean… I don't know what your grandfather sees in her," Delia said angrily.

"Me neither," Gary sighed. "And as much as I don't like him seeing her we have no right to intervene, we already had this conversation, Delia," Gary said trying to calm her down.

"I'm sorry" Delia said cleaning her tears. "Maybe you're right and she's just trying to be nice in her own way… making cruel jokes… please, just… eat your breakfast, I'll be out all day" Delia said leaving Gary's room.

He kept her secret, whatever it was about… could he trust her with his own? Even if it involved her son?

 **-o-**

That Saturday was very quiet in the Oak Mansion: Gary spent all day in the lab working with his grandfather. Ash was out all day with Misty and Brock, having the time of his life. Delia was somewhere in Viridian City during the morning and she spent all afternoon in her house, as usual, checking on the builders' job.

Delia got back to the mansion around 7 o' clock, just ready to make dinner. She had in mind something new: she had found a recipe on how to make this delicious pizza and she planned to cook some spaghetti with it too.

Ash got back to the mansion by 8 o' clock, Delia had called him to make sure he didn't eat dinner with Misty and Brock, she even asked Ash to invite them for dinner but neither of them could stay, but they promised to be there for dinner the next Friday during their next visit.

Delia was just finishing dinner when Ash got there but he still helped her making some lemonade.

"Why's Gary still in the lab? He shouldn't work that much" Delia said concerned.

"I'll go get him," Ash offered and walked out of the kitchen.

 **-o-**

Ash entered the lab. Gary was getting ready to leave, he had already turned off his computer.

"Hello." Ash smiled, hands in his pockets.

"Hi, Ash." Gary smiled, he didn't seem nervous this time.

"I was wondering if you might want to have dinner with me tonight." Ash joked.

Gary… blushed? So much for him not being nervous.

"With my mom, of course!" Ash explained.

"Oh! Thank God!" Gary acted relieved but he was still pretty much uneasy.

"C'mon!" Ash smiled as he got out of the lab.

Gary left the lab, he turned the lights off and followed Ash to the kitchen.

The three of them had a lovely dinner, just Ash, Gary and Delia. And Delia's pizza was delicious!

 **-o-**

"I don't think I can do this anymore," Delia said worried with her ear sticked to the phone.

Who was she talking to?

"Because I know you're still in love with him, and I know he still loves you!" Delia yelled to the phone with anger.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Morning in front of the Oak's mansion. Samuel Oak and Delia Ketchum were waiting outside. But who or what were they waiting for? The sky was clear, the sun was visible and shiny over the distant hills. The plants and trees in front of the Oak mansion had just been watered an hour ago by some water-type pokémon, and Ash was still sleeping.

"I can't believe he's doing this," Samuel said laughing.

"He's old enough, it's fine," Delia said with a smile. "And it's not like he hasn't had one before."

"I know, but he didn't drive it exactly," Samuel said a little concerned.

"He'll be fine, trust me, you know how responsible he's become over the years."

And then he came in a red sports car. A red sports car. Gary Oak driving a new sports car? What was happening there?

Gary parked his new car in front of the mansion. He got out of it with a big smile, showing off his new baby to his grandpa and miss Ketchum. Filling in more with the cliché, Gary was wearing sunglasses and he took them off as he got out of the car.

"So, what do you think?" Gary asked as he walked towards them.

"It's gorgeous!" professor Oak exclaimed.

"I know! You have to see it from the inside, that's where it gets even more beautiful" Gary invited his grandpa to get into the car.

And so he did. Samuel got into the car and started enjoying it, not driving it but remembering his old youth days when he had a sports car too. Guess Gary inherited that from him.

"Congratulations." Delia smiled to Gary.

"Thank you very much." Gary smiled giving Delia a kiss on the cheek.

Then Gary walked to the car to see how his grandpa was doing.

Ash got out of the mansion just then and the first thing he saw was professor Oak in the driver's seat.

"Hey, professor, you look very good in that car!" Ash exclaimed with a happy laugh.

"Yeah, he looks good but please don't give him any ideas or high hopes, I don't want him to keep the car for himself." Gary laughed.

"Well, that's not a bad idea Gary, remember that I gave you the money to buy it." Samuel laughed as he got out of the car and closed its door.

"C'mon gramps, I know you wouldn't drive this car." Gary laughed nervously, scared his grandpa was going to borrow the car from him sometime.

"Gary's right, you might be a little too old for a car like this," Delia said covering her mouth with her hand.

"Woah, woah! Now you're siding against me?" Samuel asked pretending to be offended.

"I'm going to eat some breakfast, congrats on the car, Gary." Ash smiled.

"Thank you, Ash." He smiled watching him go into the mansion.

"So, do you guys want to take a ride?" Gary offered Delia and Samuel.

"Oh! I'd love to!" Delia exclaimed excited and she got into the car, taking the passenger's seat.

"What about you, gramps?" Gary asked curious.

"Delia's right, I might be too old for that car, don't worry about me, enjoy the ride." Samuel smiled.

"Well, it's your loss!" Delia exclaimed with a lot of energy.

Gary and professor Oak laughed. "Thanks for the car again, gramps." Gary smiled and he quickly gave his grandpa a hug.

"You're welcome, grandson," Samuel said and he watched Gary and Delia leave.

 **-o-**

Gary and Delia drove from Pallet Town to Viridian City and back in less than 15 minutes, the road was quite empty that morning and Gary could speed up to 90mph.

"Oh my God! That was quite an experience!" Delia exclaimed as she got out of the car when they arrived at the Oak mansion.

"Just say it and we can do that any time." Gary smiled getting out of the car too.

"Maybe one day we can drive all the way to Fuchsia City," Delia proposed.

Gary didn't laugh. His face got serious all of a sudden. More secret related stuff?

"I'm sorry," Delia apologized.

"I know, don't worry," Gary sighed.

"It's just that… I hate it that she's there and he's here dating that woman," Delia said, her face crestfallen.

"Yeah… but as long as grandma wants it that way… we can't do anything," Gary said closing his eyes.

He breathed in. He breathed out.

"You know she loves you." Delia put her hand on Gary's shoulder.

"I know." Gary tried to act strong but the tears were close.

"Do you need to…?"

"No, I'm fine," Gary said walking to the mansion door.

 **-o-**

Gary went straight to his room. Ash saw him, he knew Gary was upset about something, when he was ready to go up the stairs, his mom grabbed him gently by the arm.

"He needs some time alone," she told him.

Ash didn't understand what his mom meant about that, but he trusted her, even if he did want to be with Gary, trying to support him.

 **-o-**

After having lunch together, Ash decided to try to cheer Gary up.

"Hey Gary, why don't we take a ride in your car?"

That seemed to enlighten Gary's mood.

"Sure." He smiled, remembering how Ash had told him he had always wanted to take a ride on his old sports car.

Was it the real reason Gary had bought a new sports car to begin with?

Maybe it was, but no one, not even Ash, suspected of that. Sometimes Ash could be just clueless.

Ash and Gary got out of the mansion.

"What a beauty! What a beauty!" Ash exclaimed watching the sports car. "I love it!" He exclaimed walking to the driver's door.

"Thanks!" Gary laughed. "But what do you think you're doing?" He asked confused as Ash opened the driver's door.

"Do you think I need a ride? No! You need a ride!" Ash laughed entering the car and putting his hands around the steering wheel.

"Are you serious?" Gary laughed entering and taking the passenger seat.

"I so wanna test this car!" Ash exclaimed overly excited.

They both fastened their seat belts.

"Do you like it?" Gary asked with a laugh giving Ash the keys.

Ash didn't respond but there was a huge smile on his face, and then he grabbed the keys and started the car.

"Let's go!" Ash exclaimed enjoying himself.

"Yeah, let's go!" Gary exclaimed excited but at the same time, he was pretty scared to see this new wild side of Ash.

And Ash started driving. They got out of the small road to the mansion and took the streets of Pallet, then they took the road to Viridian City.

Ash sped up to 80mph, then 90mph, then 100mph, then 110mph. He was going very fast.

"Oh yeah!" Ash exclaimed focusing his eyes on the road as he reached 120mph.

Gary laughed, but he was terrified. He could see the flames burning and bursting in Ash's eyes, just like a Rapidash running very fast. He had no idea Ash was so into cars, he thought the only thing Ash was into were pokémon battles and leagues.

Ash laughed too, but he was excited and not at all scared of the speed.

"Well, you just verified that the car indeed goes very fast, now we can slow down if you want to," Gary said trying to calm down.

"Oh! Don't be scared, Gary!" Ash laughed.

"Okay," Gary said trusting Ash and enjoying the speed. "It's just that we're going to get a ticket," Gary laughed nervously.

"So what? We'll pay it, baby! Why did you buy a car like this if you're not going to drive it this fast?"

Baby… baby… baby… Gary blushed and his stomach felt butterflies.

"I… I didn't know you liked speed this much," Gary said surprised.

"Well, you still don't know a lot of things about me." Ash smiled focusing his eyes on the road the whole time.

 **-o-**

They got back to the mansion in record time: 12 minutes.

"What a beauty! What a beauty!" Ash exclaimed getting out of the car. Gary was leaning his back against it now.

"So, now you like these types of cars?" Gary asked surprised.

"I love them!" Ash said leaning his back against the car, just like Gary.

"Oh! Interesting!"

"Yeah, or do you think this is the first one I drive?"

Gary laughed.

"I would have been insane to let you drive this car if I had thought it was the first time you ride." Gary joked.

Ash laughed.

"I have to ask, when did you became such a speed lover?" Gary asked focusing all his attention on Ash.

"Why does it surprise you so much that I'm a speed lover?" Ash asked curious.

Gary laughed again.

"I know… it shouldn't surprise me, you're the boy who's been on the verge of death more times than anyone else on Earth." Gary laughed.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Ash grinned.

"And you like adventure so much, I guess adrenaline and adventure hold hands together."

"Well, during my last journey in Kalos, I met this girl who was always roller blading. You should have seen the way she was always so full of energy, and the bond she had with her Lucario was incredible," Ash said with a smile. "I'm not proud to say it but she and I kind of had a secret we hid from everyone, at least we hid it from my friends who were traveling with me at the moment," Ash confessed.

"Go on," Gary said hooked by Ash's story.

"She invited me one day to a street race outside Lumiose City, I thought it actually was a rollerblades race or something like that." Ash laughed. "But it was an actual street race with cars and stuff, of course I was shocked and scared, she kind of made me get into the passenger's seat and… well, I liked it, I got so full of energy and I felt alive like when I win a pokémon battle, you know?"

"Wow! So you guys went to more street races around Kalos?" Gary asked surprised. He couldn't believe to see this side of Ash, was this even real?

"Yeah, she kept driving until one day she made me drive the car, I was scared, I enjoyed so much being in the passenger seat but that night she wanted me to be in the driver's seat, it was different, I had no idea how to drive, it was insane!" Ash laughed. "But I did it, she trusted me and I did it, of course we didn't win that race but she was happy that I learned how to drive fast enough to come in third place… it felt amazing, Gary," Ash sighed.

"Did you guys make money out of those races?" Gary asked worried.

"Not really, those guys just loved speed so much… or they were just crazy enough to risk their lives in a weekly basis." Ash laughed. "They were like a club, traveling together with their cars and stuff, but when I finally got my eight badge, I knew I had to prepare myself for the Pokémon League, so I stopped, Korrina was fine with it, she just told me to never stop driving, even if I didn't have a car." Ash smiled looking to the sky.

"Do you miss her?" Gary asked with a smile, forgetting the weird feelings he had been developing for Ash the last week.

"She was fun to be with, yeah, but part of me feels relieved I don't have to do those races anymore, even if I enjoyed them so much, they scared the hell out of me so bad!" Ash laughed.

Gary laughed too.

"Wow!" Gary exclaimed.

"What?" Ash laughed looking at him.

"I didn't know this side of you… I like it… even if I would never do such a thing."

"We should do something like that someday, together," Ash proposed.

"What? I just said I'd never do such a thing," Gary said afraid that Ash might suggest going to a street race somewhere in Kanto.

"Maybe not a street race but something… extreme," Ash said energetic.

Gary gave the idea a thought.

"I've always dreamt of hiking Mt. Silver," Gary revealed.

"Really?" Ash laughed. "I… I don't know." Ash looked to the ground.

"What? You scared of heights, Ashy-boy?" Gary teased.

Ash didn't answer.

"What? C'mon! Are you scared of heights? That's impossible!"

"I know, but I am." Ash laughed nervously.

"I don't believe you… what about all those times you've ridden your charizard and you've practically flown the sky with him?"

"I've been hella scared those times." Ash laughed. "I am just good on hiding my fear."

"I had no idea." Gary was very surprised.

"I get vertigo," Ash confessed.

"Wow! I don't know what surprises me more, that you love speed but fear heights or that such a complicated word like vertigo is part of your vocabulary." Gary teased.

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed hitting Gary with regular strength on his arm.

"Ouch!" Gary laughed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

That night… Gary couldn't handle it anymore.

The thought of his grandmother had been consuming him all day, he wanted to talk to her, he wanted to be with her, he wanted to cry on her shoulder like when he was a little kid…

It was just a couple of minutes past midnight and Gary decided he needed his grandma. So, he took his car keys and left his room, he didn't change his clothes, he was still wearing his pajamas.

And he was crying. He went down the stairs as fast as he could, he wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. But he wasn't expecting to see Ash in the kitchen.

"Gary?" Ash asked worried as he saw Gary running to the door.

"Leave me alone, Ash!" Gary exclaimed covered in tears.

"Hey!" Ash ran after Gary.

When Ash got out of the mansion, he could feel the cold wind against his face. The sky was cloudy, it seemed evident that it was going to rain. Rain... it wouldn't be safe to drive under that weather.

"Where are you going?" Ash asked when he saw Gary getting into his car.

Gary's car was parked in a small parking spot next to the mansion, it wasn't a garage but it was roofed, and there was a wall behind the car so there was only one way out.

"I need to be alone, Ash, you wouldn't understand!" Gary cried with his hands on the steering wheel.

Ash saw Gary's face, his tears and how much he was suffering. He knew it wouldn't be a smart idea to let Gary drive in that condition, much less under that climate.

"I won't let you drive in that condition, besides, it's going to rain soon, Gary, please!" Ash said standing in front of the car, so Gary wouldn't be able to leave.

Still, Gary started the car.

"Let me go! Ash, please!" Gary begged.

"I won't move until you tell me what's going on!"

"I told you, you wouldn't understand!" Gary kept crying.

"Well, I want to understand you," Ash said trying to earn Gary's trust.

It started raining. The sound of a thunder and the light of a lightning made their presence.

The rain was falling and Ash was getting wet, still, he was determined not to move until Gary told him what was happening.

Gary couldn't let Ash catch a cold, so he surrendered, he turned off the engine and got out of the car. He was still crying and he walked towards Ash, who walked enough to be under the roof that protected the car from getting wet.

Gary hugged Ash and rested his head on Ash's shoulder. Ash hugged him tightly and let Gary release his sorrow.

"I don't want to be here," Gary said after two minutes of crying.

"Let me drive," Ash agreed, he knew Gary needed to get out of there and he was going to help him.

Gary gave Ash the keys and both of them got into the car.

"So, where do you want to go?" Ash asked starting the car.

It was still raining, stronger this time. Every other minute the sound of thunder and the light of lightning got back.

"The cemetery," Gary said hoping Ash wouldn't question him.

And he didn't.

 **-o-**

Ash drove for 5 minutes to Pallet Town's cemetery. They parked and Ash realized he should have brought an umbrella but Gary didn't seem to mind. Gary got out of the car and started walking. Ash could do nothing but follow him.

It was silent, rainy and foggy but Gary sure knew the way to whatever place he was going. Ash had never liked cemeteries so he was naturally scared to be in that place.

"Gary, what are we doing here?" Ash asked confused, walking as close to Gary as he could be.

Gary didn't answer. He kept walking until he reached a crypt. Gary opened the door with a key and went inside. Inside, there were all the Oak's family ashes' urns.

Ash got a bit scared but at least the inside of that small room was warm and dry. Gary turned on some candles and closed the door when Ash entered. Then Gary sat in the middle of the room and Ash sat in front of him, crossing his legs.

Gary closed his eyes. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash looked around. He saw several urns around with some names below them. He didn't recognize most but there were three he did: the name of Gary's father, the name of Gary's mother and the name of Gary's grandmother.

"Gary… why do you needed to come here?" Ash asked trying to help his friend. He smiled with confusion and grabbed Gary's hand with his.

Gary knew he could trust Ash, after all, Ash was his oldest friend.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Gary stood up and walked to see his parents' urns. They were made of gold, his mother's had diamonds and his father's had emeralds on them because those had been their favorite jewels back then. Their names engraved on gold plaques were dusty and he cleaned them with his fingers. He hadn't been there in a long time, in fact, he didn't remember the last time he had been there.

Ash didn't know what else to say, he knew it was a difficult moment for Gary, so he just stood up and walked to stand behind Gary. Ash put his hand over Gary's shoulder. Gary kept crying in silence.

Gary closed his eyes. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

And he finally gained the strenght to talk about it.

"I was five years old," Gary finally said, though it was difficult to understand because of his crying.

Ash had a vague memory of Gary's parents' funeral. He didn't even remember the reason they died, just that it was some sort of an accident and he didn't want to ask about it right then, with Gary all emotional about them.

So he just listened.

"I miss them every day of my life," Gary sobbed and then he remained in silence for some minutes.

Ash hugged Gary eventually from behind and Gary kept crying. He was finally releasing all those feelings he had enclosed in a cage in his heart during the years.

But his parents weren't the reason he was there.

Gary touched Ash's hand and Ash knew Gary was ready to let go of the hug. Ash stopped hugging Gary and he let Gary walk to another urn: his grandmother's.

Now, Gary's grandmother's funeral was more of a blur in Ash's mind, he just remembered that Gary was six years old. Gary had lost his parents one year and the next one, he had lost his grandmother. Ash hadn't realized that until then, and he felt really bad for Gary and for professor Oak too.

"Christine," Ash sighed when he saw her name on the golden plaque.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

This time, he cried more intensely.

"Ash…" Gary sighed taking his grandmother's urn.

"Yes?" Ash asked worried.

"I want to trust you." Gary smiled weakly but his tears were covering most of his face.

"You know you can, Gary," Ash said grabbing Gary's hand.

"My grandmother..." Gary sighed closing his eyes, he was still grabbing Ash hand. "She…" he opened his eyes and look to the ceiling.

There was silence for the following seconds. Gary wasn't crying anymore. All they could hear now was the rain outside and some occasional thunders.

"She's alive." Gary threw the urn to the ground and it opened… it was empty.

Ash got shocked. But Christine Oak had died. He was at her funeral! How was that even possible? And why was her urn empty? Nothing made sense! Ash himself had seen professor Oak cry the loss of his wife.

"I know you don't understand… I still don't understand," Gary said.

Ash didn't say anything. He let Gary continue.

"I know since I'm fifteen…" Gary revealed but he kept the secret he and Delia shared… because it was Delia who had told him the truth. "I've seen her, yes… I know where she lives… I've visited her a couple of times… she's still my sweet grandma." Gary smiled among tears. "I just… I still don't know why she left gramps… why she had to fake her own death… and I can't ask her that… I don't want to ruin the bond she and I have." Gary covered his face. "I'm… terrified of finding the truth."

Until then, Ash had never thought of how complicated Gary's life must have been. His parents had died when he was very young, so as his grandmother (who now was alive but that didn't make things easier for Gary). Also, Gary had a lot of social pressure because of his grandpa, Ash thought. The world would expect so much from professor Oak's grandson and even though Gary hadn't mentioned anything about it, Ash could only imagine.

"She loves me… I know that… but now that gramps is dating someone… I don't know… it feels like… like I need to know the truth… does he know she's alive? Or did my grandma fooled him into faking her own death? I don't know what's worse… I… I…" Gary couldn't say anything more, he burst in tears and Ash hugged him again.

"You have to go see her and ask her the truth, that's the only thing I can think of," Ash said.

"I can't… I can't… I…"

"That's okay, Gary… you're not ready yet… but I'm sure one day you'll be… and I promise I'll go with you." Ash smiled.

"You would go with me?" Gary let go of the hug and looked at Ash with surprise.

"Yeah, I don't care if I'm in the middle of traveling in another region, whenever you're ready, just call me and I'll be here, of course, it would be better for me if you're ready before I leave." Ash smiled. "But I know it will take you some time, and that's fine."

"Ash… I… thank you" Gary hugged Ash stronger now.

Ash smiled. Hugging Gary… it felt nice. Being Gary's support… felt wonderful.

"I promise I'll stop crying next week," Gary joked which was a good sign that he would get better.

"Take your time, Gary."

 **-o-**

Ash and Gary got back to the Oak mansion by two in the morning. Ash parked Gary's car just right where it was before they left.

It wasn't raining anymore but their clothes were still a bit wet.

"Thank you for tonight, Ash." Gary smiled as they entered the mansion.

"Hey, that's what friends are for, right?" Ash said with a smile.

"I'm gonna drink some water," Gary said walking to the kitchen.

"And I need a piece of apple pie," Ash followed Gary.

They spent a couple more minutes in the kitchen. Ash eating a slice of apple pie and Gary drinking water.

"She loved baking," Gary sighed as he watched Ash eat his piece of pie.

"She did?" Ash asked curious.

"I think I helped her once or twice, I was too young to remember," Gary sighed.

"How is she like?" Ash asked feeling a bit embarrased for not remembering her but well, he hadn't interacted much with her.

"Beautiful," Gary sighed. "Nice... and happy, she is very happy," he sighed again.

"Do you think... she wasn't happy when she lived here?"

"I'm scared of finding out that, I'm terrified."

"Still... faking her own death..." Ash looked to his piece of apple pie.

"Yeah," Gary sighed. "Still, I'm glad I could finally share this with someone." Gary smiled.

"And I'm very honored to be the one you shared it with." Ash smiled too.

Suddenly, a thunder crashed in the distance making a tremendous noise that made Gary scream in fear.

Ash started laughing so hard.

"You screamed like a girl!" Ash laughed he was almost crying.

"I did not!" Gary exclaimed blushed.

But it didn't take Gary more than two seconds to join Ash in his laughter.

Gary was feeling better and it was mostly because he could finally share his feelings with someone… well, maybe just a small piece of them.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

The following days were quieter in the Oak mansion. Ash knew it was better to leave Gary alone with himself after all that had happened. Gary was glad Ash knew he needed to be left alone and that he gave him some space. He appreciated Ash for letting him take a respite, after all, he was emotionally exhausted and he needed time to rest his soul.

Gary needed to focus on his research until he could leave the thought of his grandmother rest for a while. He knew he wasn't ready to confront her yet.

Ash went out with Misty and Brock most days of the week and during the days they couldn't visit him, he spent the day playing with his pokémon in the garden outside Professor Oak's lab.

Ash and Gary didn't speak much during that week, but things were fine between them, they would exchange some smiles and happy faces during the week.

Gary didn't use his car during the week.

 **-o-**

It was a Monday night, past midnight, when things in the Oak mansion started to heat up… probably overheat.

Ash woke up from his sleep. He was thirsty, he needed water, cold water. He left his room in his black t-shirt and his favorite pokéball boxers. He went down the stairs to the second floor and when he was going to go down the stairs for the living room, he saw the big screen TV on, a familiar face on it. Gary was having a video call with Dawn.

At first Ash was surprised and excited, he hadn't seen Dawn in years and sure, she looked a bit older, her voice a bit more mature, her hair bluer, but she was still one of his best friends; he felt sad because it had been a long time and he hadn't contacted her, not even given her a phone call, and now Gary was having a video call with her? Gary and Dawn had only met a couple of times and now they were having a video call in the middle of the night?

Ash started to heat up, he didn't recognize the sensation because it was the first time he had ever experienced it… he was jealous.

But jealous about what, exactly? Jealous that Gary had never video called him during all those years? Jealous that Dawn had never video called him? Jealous that Gary was talking to Dawn, laughing with Dawn, at two in the morning?

Ash ignored the sensation and went down the stairs, the TV camera was just facing Gary who was sitting on the couch, so Dawn hadn't seen Ash yet. Ash tried not to make noise and go to the kitchen unnoticed, but Gary heard his steps and made a fuss about it.

"Ashy-boy! Hey! Come here! I'm sure Dawn would be delighted to see you!" Gary exclaimed inviting Ash to join him on the couch.

"Ash is there? Oh my God! I haven't seen him in ages!" Dawn said from the giant TV. It looked like it was early morning where she was.

"I can't, Dawn! I'm on my boxers!" Ash exclaimed.

"Oh!" Dawn laughed.

"Don't be such a baby and come here!" Gary laughed too.

He didn't know why, but Ash got so pissed at Gary at that moment for calling him that. Who had been the crybaby last week?

"Fine, I'll just drink some water, I'm thirsty." Ash smiled.

"Why is Ash living in your house, Gary? And why didn't you tell me?" Dawn asked.

So Gary had been video calling Dawn for a while. Since when, exactly? And the thing that bugged Ash the most, he hadn't told her about him living in the mansion. Wasn't he that important to Gary to even just mention that? Gary knew Dawn was a great friend of him, so why hadn't he had the courtesy to invite him to video call her together at least once?

Ash's heart was burning in jealousy and he hadn't even realized that, not yet.

Ash drank two glasses of cold water and then he got back to the living room, he sat on the couch next to Gary.

"Hey, there you are!" Dawn exclaimed "wow! You sure look older."

"Thanks, it's been a while" Ash sighed "so, what have you been up to?"

"I was just about to tell Gary that I'm going to Viridian City for a special pokémon coordinators event," Dawn revealed, excited.

"You are?" Gary asked with a big smile.

That's when Ash finally realized. He was jealous. But why exactly? Was he jealous that Gary was now a better friend of Dawn than he had ever been to her? Or was he jealous that Dawn was a better friend of Gary than he was to him?

"In fact, I am!" Dawn smiled almost jumping from the sofa she was sitting on.

"That's wonderful, I so want to see you!" Gary exclaimed.

"What about you, Ash? Aren't you happy that we're finally going to see each other after a while?" Dawn asked noticing that Ash had remained quiet since she had revealed the news.

"Oh!" Ash exclaimed. "I can't wait to see you!" he faked over excitement.

He wasn't sure if he was mad at Gary or mad at Dawn, maybe at both. But he knew he was mad. More symptoms of his jealousy that he was experiencing for the first time.

"Damn! I have to leave you guys, I'll be there next Friday, I won't be able to video call you for the rest of the week, Gary, I hope it's not a problem."

"Of course it's not, that way I'll be more excited when we see each other." He smiled.

"I'll be sure to e-mail you the details, I'll be waiting for both of you, okay?"

"Sure, Dawn! Have a nice week!" Gary smiled.

"Bye Gary, bye Ash, see you this Friday!"

And the video call ended before Ash could say goodbye.

"Are you okay?" Gary asked Ash after he turned off the TV.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"You didn't say goodbye, is your mind somewhere else?" Gary asked worried.

"Since when do you guys video call each other at 2 in the morning?" Ash asked trying not to sound jealous, but he did sound jealous.

Gary laughed.

"Are you jealous, Ashy-boy?"

"No, I'm not!" Ash was mad, he stood up. "And don't call me Ashy-boy! I am not your pet!" he yelled at Gary.

"Ouch! I… I didn't know you took it as an offense… I'm sorry."

"And can I know what you want by video calling her at this late in the night?"

Gary was shocked to hear that question coming from Ash in such a judgmental tone. He needed to process his answer for a few seconds.

"I'm… I'm sorry but I don't understand your question, Dawn and I are friends, pretty good friends, since we met when she was traveling with you. I ran into her two years ago, when I was in Hoenn for a science congress, we exchanged numbers and we have been pretty good friends since then," Gary answered, looking at Ash with a confused look. "Why do you ask me what I want by video calling her at this time of the night?"

"Oh, please! Be a man and answer!" now Ash sounded totally jealous.

Gary laughed.

"I just don't understand why you are so mad. I call her at this time of the night because it's morning for her and it's the only time of the day we both can do this."

"Do you guys…?" Ash couldn't finish his question.

"You're asking me if we're dating?" Gary laughed. "Oh my God! You are so jealous!"

"That's not true!" Ash said angrily as he blushed.

"The question here is, you're jealous of me… or you're jealous of her?" Gary teased.

Ash made a tantrum and walked to the stairs.

"Ashy-boy, come on!" Gary stood up and walked behind him. "We're just friends, that's all."

Ash stopped halfway of the stairs.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. He tried to keep calm, Gary and Dawn were just friends… wait… why would he be mad if they were more than friends? Was he really jealous of Gary? No way! Ash didn't like Dawn that way… so, was he jealous of Dawn? Impossible!

"I am hurt that you didn't mention to her that I've been living here, it's been two weeks already! Why didn't you mention me to her?" Ash demanded.

"Oh! So that's why you're so mad!" Gary said with relief. "I'm sorry, I guess…"

"I'm not that important to you? Is that it? I don't play an important role in your life so my presence here is not worth mentioning? What about last week? I thought we were finally good friends again like when we were children."

Gary laughed.

"What? Why is that so funny?" Ash said madly.

"Ash, it's just that I've only talked to her twice since you've been staying here, the first time I may not have mentioned you because I may have forgotten, hey, I'm human." He laughed. "And well, I might have told her tonight if you hadn't shown up," Gary said with a laugh.

"I don't believe you."

"Well, I'm sorry, that's the truth." Gary laughed.

"Well, good night, Oak!" Ash exclaimed walking up the stairs.

"Ash, come on! Hey!" Gary laughed but Ash didn't stop and he went back to his room.

 **-o-**

The door to Gary's room was opened.

Ash stood at the door of Gary's room.

Gary was shirtless. He looked so sexy… so hot.

Did Gary work out? He sure did. He was punching a boxing bag. Since when did Gary have a boxing bag in his room? It wasn't there the last time Ash had been there, when Gary was sick.

And since when did Gary practiced boxing?

Gary's naked torso was sweating. The room, the atmosphere, it was steamy.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary saw Ash by the door.

"Hey, Ash, come in." He smiled and he kept punching the boxing bag.

Ash was trembling. His body was shaking. But why?

Ash found himself walking into Gary's room even if he didn't want to.

Gary walked to the door and closed it as Ash walked to the center of the room, where the boxing bag was.

Ash stood still, like he was frozen.

Gary stood behind him, very close.

"So, you like this, don't you?" Gary said to Ash's ear.

Ash couldn't move. The heat started flowing through his veins.

"You like coming into my room," Gary whispered.

"No, I… I was just looking for my hat… I can't find it anywhere," Ash said his lamest excuse, trying to move, but he could only move his eyes to open them and close them.

"Ash… when will you stop pretending?" Gary whispered to Ash's ear and he breathed on Ash's neck. "You smell good, I like your smell, Ash." He closed his eyes, and Ash did too.

"Pretend? Pretend what?" Ash walked two steps to the front.

"Hey!" Gary grabbed Ash by the arm and turned him to face him. "Don't hide your feelings, Ash, cut it out! Don't hide them anymore, I know what you feel, you know what you feel" Gary said touching his forehead to Ash's forehead.

"I don't feel anything Gary, just let me go," Ash said in a weak voice trying to leave.

"Hey!" Gary grabbed Ash by the arm again. "Stop fighting the feeling, let yourself go, let it flow through you."

Now their noses were touching.

"Okay?" Gary asked putting his hands around Ash's neck. "Let yourself go and say it, say those words," Gary whispered.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Say it, Ash… say it," Gary said closing his eyes.

"Only… only if you say it first." Ash closed his eyes too.

Gary opened his eyes slowly. Ash opened his too.

"If that…" Gary said moving his hand from Ash's neck to Ash's hair. "If that sets you free… then I'll do it." Gary smiled caressing Ash's face with his right hand.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I am crazy about you," Gary said looking deep into Ash's eyes. "I like you," he said getting his lips closer to Ash's lips. "My body starts shaking whenever I see you." Now his lips were closer. "Now say it," he sighed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I can't control myself when I'm around you…" Lips got even closer, just inches apart. "You… you are so hot… you make me burn inside when I'm this close to you… you make me… explode," Ash said feeling the hotness become a part of him.

And he leaned his lips closer to Gary's, less than an inch apart… they closed their eyes… and they made contact… lips all wet, they started kissing.

And Dawn entered Gary's room.

"Ash? Gary!" she shouted.

And Ash woke up.

Ash looked like he had had a nightmare. It was just 4:12am. His heart was beating fast, he was sweating…

He feared that new strange feeling that was just blooming in him…

But more than a nightmare, it had been a dream… a wet type of dream.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

Ash couldn't fall asleep after waking up from his dream with Gary that night. He didn't get up from his bed, he hoped he would fall asleep eventually but when the sun rose and its light traveled past the window, he decided to finally get up, the show had to go on.

He was tense, very tense. His body felt heavy and he could feel his blood running through his veins, but it was a sensation like if his blood was heavier, ten times heavier, like his blood had lead instead of iron… which could explain why he was feeling heavier and why he felt something toxic inside. He felt like he was in a place where the gravity was multiplied ten times.

He decided the best way to get rid of all that stress was to go out and run. So he changed into more comfortable clothes and went down to the kitchen where he would take a bottle of water to drink on his way to the park. He was planning to run all around Pallet Town which was like 8 miles of distance from one side to the other.

But to Ash's surprise, when he entered the kitchen, he saw Gary just finishing his breakfast. Great, just the one person he needed to see. All the stress overwhelming Ash intensified the moment he saw Gary, he couldn't stop remembering his dream… that dream where Gary told him to stop fighting, to accept his feelings for him… that dream where Gary looked so sexy, shirtless and covered in sweat… that dream where he and Gary kissed with so much passion he woke up with a big surprise in his boxers.

If it had been just a dream… why had it felt so real?

He knew he had to get away from there as soon as possible. So he didn't even bothered to say good morning to Gary, who was reading the newspaper. Ash walked to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water.

"Where are you going so early?" Gary asked curious, looking up from his newspaper.

"I'll just… run around," Ash said tensed.

"You? Run? At this time of the morning? That's odd," Gary said with a laugh.

"Not really, what is odd is that you're awake at this time of the morning, the sun has just risen, it's not even six yet," Ash said feeling the fire burn inside his chest.

Gary looked to Ash and laughed, he knew Ash was still jealous of what had happened last night, it had only been a couple of hours since.

"Anyway, I'll just go, bye," Ash said but Gary stood up fast and grabbed him by his arm.

"Wait!" Gary said grabbing Ash.

"What are you doing, Gary?" Ash asked a bit annoyed, he felt like he was going to explode if he didn't leave the kitchen soon.

Gary didn't laugh this time. His face got all serious.

"I want you to tell me the truth, Ash," Gary said looking him directly into his eyes with a demanding look he had never given him… or anyone.

"The truth about what?" Ash got scared that _this_ Gary was going to act like _the_ Gary in his dream… no, _this_ Gary wasn't _the_ Gary of his dream, _this_ Gary was the real Gary and _this_ Gary seemed mad at Ash.

"You know what I am talking about, Ash." Gary closed his eyes, trying to calm down.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I… I have no idea, seriously." Ash laughed but he was nervous, he started to sweat. Gary was still holding his arm by the elbow.

Could Gary know about Ash's dream? Of course not! That was ridiculously impossible!

"Don't pretend like you don't know!" Gary raised his voice but not enough to yell to Ash. "I'm talking about what happened last night… about Dawn… about you and I, about us two, Ash," Gary said heating up.

Gary was tensed too. And with Ash's tension, they created a very tensed atmosphere between them. Suddenly, breathing in and breathing out turned into the hardest thing to do, because the air they breathed in was heavy between them. The air also got hotter and gravity was a hundred times stronger in the small space between them, it was about time until a black hole appeared between them to destroy everything.

Gary had stayed up all night, thinking about Ash's reaction to Dawn's video call. Gary was still feeling something… something for Ash… something that was born that time when Ash took care of him when he was sick and that had gotten stronger when Ash had driven his car very fast, and when Ash had comforted him when he told him all about his parents and his grandmother.

Both of them were scared to embrace those new feelings but Gary just needed Ash to tell him he was feeling the same… so they both could do something about it… but Ash was just discovering those feelings, and like Gary had thought at first, Ash thought those feelings would get away eventually if he stayed away from Gary.

"You need to relax, Gary, let me go!" Ash pulled his arm apart from Gary and ran as fast as he could to the main door of the mansion.

"Alright, if you say so, I think running will do me good, wait for me!" Gary ran behind Ash.

 **-o-**

Ash ignored Gary most of the way. And running did seem to let Ash's tension go away, Ash felt lighter the more he ran, he realized it when breathing wasn't as hard as it had been before, maybe it was the pure air of Pallet Town after all.

Gary ran as fast as he could to keep with Ash's rhythm but Ash was faster, and Ash had way more stamina than Gary, after all, Gary had spent the last years of his life enclosed in his grandpa's laboratory while Ash had traveled around entire regions, by merely walking most of the time.

They had run around 3 miles unstoppably when Gary finally needed to rest.

"Ash, stop, please!" Gary used his last breath to exclaim those words.

Ash turned around when he heard Gary and he saw him stand by a tree near the outskirts of Pallet Town.

Ash considered leaving Gary behind, that way Gary would not talk to him and thus, it would be easier to get rid of those feelings… but when he saw Gary drop to the ground, exhausted, he knew he wasn't the kind of person to leave a friend behind.

So, despite feeling better, lighter and with less tension, Ash decided to go help Gary and risk himself to feel worse, heavier and with more tension afterwards.

"I'm sorry," Ash said standing three feet away from Gary, he didn't want to get any closer because he knew the atmosphere would get just as it had turned moments ago, in the kitchen.

Gary was lying on the grass, sweating. Gary was breathing in and breathing out intensely. He looked completely exhausted, like he had used his last bit of energy. Ash looked at the bottle of water he had taken from the mansion, it was still half full. Gary hadn't brought a bottle of water.

"Here, you need this more than I do" Ash tossed the bottle to Gary and it hit him in the chest.

"Hey!" Gary exclaimed hurt.

"Sorry!" Ash exlaimed with a laugh.

It seemed like Gary still had some energy left because he started laughing too.

"I'm sorry," Ash sighed walking closer to Gary and sitting next to him.

Gary was still lying on the ground, the bottle of water was still on his chest, it seemed like he didn't have enough energy to move anything, but he could still talk and laugh.

"I'm sorry it got so tense between us moments ago," Gary said, his eyes were closed and it seemed he wouldn't be opening them soon.

"Yeah, me too," Ash said grabbing his bottle of water.

"Hey, I thought you had given that to me."

"You can't even move your arms." Ash laughed.

"I was going to drink it when I could." Gary laughed.

"I think I'll help you," Ash said in a mischievous tone.

"Wait, what?" Gary opened his eyes to see Ash throwing the water of the bottle directly to Gary's chest. "Fuck! It's cold!" Gary laughed and he got up instantly, like the water had given him energy.

Ash couldn't stop laughing.

"You'll pay for this!" Gary laughed and jumped over Ash.

Gary started tickling Ash.

"Gary, stop! Please!" Ash laughed enjoying the feeling of Gary touching him and tickling him, not realizing what it really meant.

"No way! That water was so fucking cold, Ketchum!" Gary kept tickling Ash with his hands on his stomach and neck.

"Please, I beg you!" Ash kept laughing.

"Oh, man!" Gary exclaimed dropping to the ground, the burst of energy he had gotten thanks to the cold water ended and he was lying on the ground again, exhausted.

"Don't you ever dare doing that again!" Ash laughed punching Gary softly.

"Man, I've never been so exhausted in my whole life," Gary sighed closing his eyes.

"And to think I was planning to run all around town, we just ran about a third part of it" Ash laughed.

"You're crazy, Ketchum!"

"I guess you're right." Ash smiled.

The tension between them had disappeared, at least for the moment.

"I don't think I'll be moving anytime soon," Gary said.

"That's okay, it's a beautiful day," Ash said looking around, the trees were green, the wind was blowing in their direction and the sun was rising in the horizon.

Suddenly, Ash's stomach made a noise and both of them laughed.

"You should go to the mansion and eat something, I'll catch up with you later," Gary insisted.

"Alright, will you be okay?" Ash asked as he stood up.

"Sure, maybe I'll take a nap here." Gary laughed.

"Okay, I'll go out with Brock and Misty around 10:00am, why don't you come?"

"I think I'll stay in the lab, I have so much work to do, but thanks, Ash."

"Fine, but please, hang out with us one day." Ash smiled.

"I will, Ashy." Gary smiled too.

Ash left to the mansion and Gary stayed there, lying on the grass.

"Man, this thing I feel for Ash… I'm definitely fucked up," Gary sighed with a weirdly optimistic smile.

And he did take a nap there.

 **-o-**

Gary got back to the mansion after Ash had left with Misty and Brock. He was all sweaty so he took a shower and then he went to the lab to do his research.

The rest of the day was as usual to him. Around noon, the smell of Delia's cooking traveled from the kitchen to the lab, it smelled like breaded chicken milanese, one of Gary's personal favorites.

He ate with Delia and his grandpa, Ash didn't come to eat lunch so Gary guessed he would eat with Misty and Brock wherever they were. Gary really wanted to go out with Ash, Misty, and Brock but he felt like he wouldn't fit in there because he wasn't as close to Misty and Brock as Ash was and well, there was the tension that threatened to reappear between him and Ash at any given time.

 **-o-**

Gary was tired of working in the lab, it was around 3:00pm when he decided to end for the day and do something, maybe watch a movie in his room and wait for Ash to get home so they could do something together, feeding the pokémon dinner seemed to be the safest choice to avoid the tension grow back between them.

But as Gary walked from the kitchen to the living room, decided to take the stairs to his room, the phone of the mansion rang. Gary answered the call.

"Oak mansion, who is this?"

"Good afternoon, is this Gary Oak?" a woman asked politely from the other side of the line.

"Yes, it's him."

"Hi, Gary, I'm calling you from Viridian's City bookstore, we just got the book you ordered three weeks ago, and you can come to pick it up as soon as you can," the lady informed in an excited voice.

"That's great!" Gary exclaimed with excitement. "I'll be there in less than an hour, thank you."

Going to Viridian City wasn't in his plans but he could use the time there to spend some time alone with himself and pick the book he had ordered, killing two birds with one stone.

He considered taking his car to Viridian City but he wasn't in the mood to drive so he took the bus from Pallet Town to Viridian City instead.

 **-o-**

Gary went to Viridian's City mall and went straight to the third floor, where Viridian's City bookstore was located. He pretty much ignored all stores he passed on his way up. Gary had never been a fan of shopping in malls and he would have never frequented them if his favorite bookstore hadn't been located there.

He entered the bookstore and he didn't go straight to pick up his book, which was already paid. He wanted to see if there were any new releases that caught his attention. He went to his safer zones: drama and mystery, but there were no books that caught his attention. He thought about moving to another section, when he thought about the romance section, he felt something that told him not to do it… and he didn't do it. Had it been something about Ash?

"Hi, I was wondering if there were any new interesting releases," Gary asked a young employee who was putting some books on a bookshelf.

"We just got a new book this morning, I don't remember the name but I guess it was in the Gay section." The lady smiled.

"Gay section?" Gary asked, his hands shaking, his stomach growling, his forehead sweating.

"Yeah, it's next to the comedy section." The lady kept smiling.

"Thank you." Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He went to pick up his book and left the bookstore immediately. Something about that lady telling him to go check the Gay section… had stricken him right into his chest… maybe she had just seen him as the type of guy who would ready anything… hadn't she?

What if not? What if that woman had thought of him as…? He couldn't even think of that.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He saw a bench and he sat on it. Then he started finally thinking about himself and his feelings.

"Am I?" he asked himself, he knew what he was implying about himself in that question. "I mean… I obviously feel something… for Ash."

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I am, aren't I?" he asked himself again, smiling weakly.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I am," he sounded more convincing this time though his smile wasn't that big.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"So what if I am?" he even laughed a little this time.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. He stood up, smiling and he bought an ice cream cone for himself. He decided to take a look around the stores, just to have fun, but he was only trying to avoid the self-discovery he had just made moments ago.

As he enjoyed his vanilla ice cream cone, he walked through the mall, he just looked through the windows until he stopped in front of a male clothing store.

There was a mannequin in display, wearing only some boxers.

Suddenly, the mannequin transfigured into Ash. It was now Ash wearing only some boxers.

"Ash? What are… are you… doing there?" Gary asked trembling, blushing and looking around to see if other people noticed Ash in display but no one seemed to.

Ash giggled.

"Get out of there! And put… some clothes on!" Gary yelled in a low voice but Ash kept laughing silently.

Ash put his hands on his boxers and started touching himself.

"Ash Ketchum, what the hell are you doing?!" Gary shouted and suddenly, Ash transfigured back into a mannequin.

Gary looked around and people were staring at him.

He felt so embarrassed… and so ashamed.

"You have to send me that report before six o' clock!" Gary shouted putting his index finger on his ear, pretending he was having a phone call through a hands-free device, and he rushed his way out of the mall.

Most people bought that and kept walking around.

But there was someone who wasn't convinced. Someone who turned around to hear a familiar name being shouted by another familiar face in front of a clothing store. She had arrived to Viridian City before planned.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

After what had happened at the mall, Gary felt so embarrassed he decided to lock himself in his bedroom for the rest of the day, until he went down for dinner. He was hoping Ash would have dinner with Misty and Brock, so he wouldn't have to see him after finally realizing he had feelings for him.

But to his surprise, Misty, Brock, and Ash were sitting by the table next to professor Oak while Delia was serving them dinner. It wasn't anything fancy, Delia had made hotdogs for dinner. Gary was about to go back to his room, unnoticed, when Delia saw him.

"Gary's finally here! Hey!" she exclaimed happily.

"Come here, son, please." Samuel invited Gary to join everyone.

"Hi everyone." Gary walked to the table.

"Hey, Gary! How have you been?" Misty asked curious.

"Good. Misty, thank you, what about you?" he asked her politely.

"Just fine, thanks." she smiled.

"Professor Oak was just telling us how much effort you've put into your latest research," Brock commented.

"He was?" Gary smiled nervously.

"Don't be shy, Gary, you know you're passionate about your research." Samuel smiled proudly.

"He is, but he is a bit of a workaholic. You should see how many hours a week he spends in that lab." Ash joked and everyone laughed with him, except Gary but he wasn't offended, he knew it was true... he was still embarrassed, he had never enjoyed being the subject of a conversation.

"Well, dinner's ready." Delia smiled. "By the way, have I told you how beautiful our house is going to look?" She smiled, changing the topic. When she took her seat, she winked to Gary. She had saved him.

Gary actually said "thank you" with his mouth.

And during most of the dinner, Delia talked about her house and her remodeling plans. Everyone was caught in the conversation, even Ash. Gary didn't say quite much but no one really noticed it.

"I'll go get dessert!" Delia smiled walking to the fridge where she had stored a delicious cake she had bought that afternoon.

"I'm glad you're all here, there's something I want to say," Samuel said.

Now Gary's attention was all focused on his grandpa. What did he have to say? Gary looked at Delia, worried, and Delia was worried too. Their exchange of worried looks had to be with their secret, didn't it?

"I want to make a special dinner this Friday, with all of you, just like now," Samuel informed.

"I'll be honored to come." Misty smiled.

"Count me in," Brock said happily.

"A special dinner? What are we celebrating?" Delia asked confused.

"I want you all to meet Agatha." Samuel smiled.

"Agatha?" Ash asked trying to remember the face of that familiar name.

"We know her already, gramps." Gary tried to be funny. Delia laughed a bit to Gary's joke but Ash, Misty and Brock remained silent.

"I sense a lot of tension between those three," Misty whispered to Brock.

"I mean, formally," Samuel commented. "I'm inviting some friends too, I want to formally introduce her as my partner," he added.

"Partner?" Ash asked confused.

"Well, girlfriend sounds like we're young and let's face it, we're not." Samuel laughed.

"You're dating Agatha?" Ash asked surprised.

"That's right, and we're very happy." Samuel smiled. "Delia, Brock, would you two honor me with making a delicious dinner?"

"Of course!" Brock answered with excitement but Delia wasn't quite excited.

"Oh well! We should get to eat this delicious cake but there's no milk, oh my!" Delia said changing the subject. "If you excuse me" she kept smiling and left the dining room.

"I'll go with you, Delia," Gary said standing up and following her outside the mansion.

"There's definitely some tension between those three," Brock whispered now to Misty.

"Is your mom okay, Ash?" Samuel asked confused.

"Maybe she's a bit stressed about the house," Ash said without a single doubt.

"Yeah, that must be it." Samuel smiled.

"So, professor, you have to tell us everything about how you and Agatha started dating," Misty said excitedly.

 **-o-**

"What the hell was that?" Gary asked Delia in the middle of the street.

"He wants to formally introduce her to us? What is this? The 50's?" Delia said angrily.

"Delia," Gary said stopping her and grabbing her shoulders with his hands. "I know you don't like this but my grandmother's fine with it."

"How could you say that?" Delia said madly.

"Well, she left him for God's sake! Isn't he allowed to move on with his life?" Gary was pissed off now. "Why are you on her side anyway? Do you realize how much she has made me suffer? I lost my parents one year and the next, she decides to leave me!" Gary exclaimed in tears.

"Honey…" Delia hugged Gary.

"She never loved me!" Gary shouted in tears, pushing Delia away. "So why do we have to save gramps for her? Huh? She clearly didn't love him or else she wouldn't have left him!"

"Gary, you don't understand…"

"Well, tell me! Tell me why she left me!" Gary demanded.

"I…. I can't… she made me promise," Delia said crestfallen.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Gramps has the right to know," Gary said with breeze.

"No, we can't tell him!" Delia said scared.

"Then we have to let him go on with his life, otherwise we'd just be cruel."

Now Delia started crying.

"Delia…"

"It's just that…" Delia walked to the sidewalk and sat on it.

Gary sat next to her.

"What is it?" Gary asked her.

"She does love you, Gary, you know that" Delia said covering her face with her hands.

"Yeah… I know, she's been really nice the times I've visited her… but it's not enough anymore" Gary sighed.

"Gary…"

"I agreed with you… not to ask her anything, because you told me she would tell me the truth whenever she was ready… but you know what? That's selfish of her! I need to know the truth! And if you won't tell me, fine! But don't expect me to keep this secret from you anymore!" Gary said standing up.

"Gary! Don't make a mistake you'll regret later!"

"Don't worry, I won't tell gramps… but don't expect me not to like Agatha, she's a nice woman and she makes gramps happy," Gary sighed.

Delia stood up and grabbed Gary's arm. Delia sighed. "Fine."

"Fine? Just that? After keeping that secret for two years… I expected you to fight more" Gary said confused.

Delia laughed a bit. "I just… didn't know you needed to know the truth so much… I'll tell her you won't keep our secret anymore, so she will feel pressured to tell you the truth as soon as possible." Delia smiled.

"You will?" Gary asked surprised.

"I will." Delia smiled. "Oh, the hell, now let's go buy some milk and go back before they worry about us." She put her arm around Gary's back.

"You just said hell." Gary laughed.

"Too much drama for one night, I needed to say it for my own sake." Delia smiled.

Gary laughed again.

"Your mother would have loved to see the man you've become," Delia sighed out of nowhere.

Gary didn't say anything but he smiled a little.

"I'm sorry," Delia said.

"That's fine... it's been more than ten years," Gary sighed.

"I mean it, she would be proud of you, and your father would too."

"Thanks, it means a lot to me, that you say that."

"Well, I knew them." Delia smiled.

 **-o-**

When Gary and Delia got back with the milk, the conversation went on casually. When it was time for Brock and Misty to leave, everyone said their goodbyes and Ash insisted he would walk them to the bus station.

"Could you go with them too, Gary? I'm… I'm a little afraid of Ash coming back alone," Delia whispered to Gary.

"Sure," Gary said to Delia and he joined Misty, Ash, and Brock.

 **-o-**

"You're taking us in your sports car?" Misty asked excited.

"Why not? Would you rather walk?" Gary asked with a laugh.

"Of course not! I'll take the passenger seat!" Misty exclaimed entering the car.

"I always wanted to have a ride on your sports car, Gary," Brock said entering the car with Ash, taking the seats in the back.

"That's a very popular opinion these days," Gary laughed looking to Ash through the rearview.

"Please, don't be gentle and drive as fast as you can," Misty said fastening her seatbelt.

"We're not taking the highway, just a couple streets." Gary laughed.

"Damn!" Misty exclaimed pretending she was mad.

Gary drove carefully to Pallet Town's bus station.

"We'll see you on Friday!" Brock exclaimed waving goodbye.

"See you guys!" Ash exclaimed as Gary drove the car away from the bus station.

This time, Ash was in the passenger seat.

"Can we talk?" Ash asked Gary.

"About what?" Gary answered quickly. He was nervous thinking Ash would ask him about his feelings.

"Are you okay with your grandpa dating Agatha?" Ash asked worried. "I mean, your grandmother's still alive and all." Ash was concerned.

Gary stopped the car, it wasn't like there was traffic on the streets at that hour of the night.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"He… he has the right to move on," Gary sighed.

"I understand," Ash said putting his hand on Gary's shoulder. "I just wanted to make sure you're fine with it."

"Thanks, Ashy." Gary smiled.

Gary drove back to the Oak mansion and he parked his car in the usual spot.

"Do you want to watch a movie or something?" Gary asked Ash.

Ash took a few seconds to answer… he was still thinking about his wet dream about Gary… but he just realized there had been no tension between he and Gary on the car, so he thought he would be safe to watch a movie with Gary.

"Sure, I'd love to." Ash smiled.

 **-o-**

Two hours later, Gary was finally in his room. As he closed the door, he undressed and he was ready to go take a shower. He wondered if Ash was doing the same, somehow, the thought of both of them being naked at the same time with just a wall between them… well, it was appealing.

Gary laughed but the moment he felt something down on his boxers, he started to worry again.

And thankfully, a phone call saved him from those thoughts.

But who could be calling at that time of the night?

"Hello?" Gary answered.

" _Gary, it's me!_ " a familiar female voice exclaimed with excitement.

"Dawn? What a surprise!"

" _I know, and I have a bigger surprise, I am already in Viridian City!"_

"What? That's awesome! I thought you'd arrive until Friday."

" _I know! There was something with my flight and I had to leave earlier than expected. Anyway, I was wondering if we could go out tomorrow, maybe go to the cinema and watch a movie or something."_

"I would love to, where are you staying?"

" _At the Palm Hotel."_

"Pick you up at 8?"

" _I'll be waiting. It's a date!"_ she smiled and she hung up quickly.

A date. A date. A date.

Gary was going to have a date.

A date with Dawn.

Somehow, he knew it was going to be bad news.

 **-o-**

Just as Gary was signing his sentence with agreeing on a date with Dawn, Delia was forcing someone else to sign her own sentence. But how?

"I can't keep your secret anymore, Christine… Gary wants to know the truth."

Delia was walking in circles around her room, she was nervous.

"I know, I know, I haven't told him anything, I kept my promise, I would tell him where you were with the condition you were the one to tell him the truth… seriously, he needs to know, he is your grandchild after all."

Delia sat on her bed and she looked to the window. It was dark outside.

"No, he won't tell Samuel, he supports him on his relationship with Agatha," Delia informed.

Delia looked at her nails, they needed some care, but she didn't have the time.

"I know you love him… but he doesn't think so, you need to act fast before you lose your grandson."

Delia hoped that by saying that, she would force Christine to act right at the moment.

"I'll tell him you'd be happy to see him this Sunday." Delia smiled, realizing she had just accomplished her goal.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Gary knew, the next day was going to be one of those 'life-changing' days.

He woke up early, just as usual, he got out of the mansion to pick up the newspaper and then he went to the kitchen, only to see Ash making breakfast.

He should have taken that as the first sign that anything was possible to happen that day.

"Good morning!" Ash exclaimed with joy. He was making pancakes.

Gary seemed a bit confused to see Ash making breakfast.

"I know! But my mother gave me her recipe and I can follow instructions." Ash laughed.

"Alright, I'll trust you." Gary laughed too. "Just… try not to explode this kitchen." He teased.

"Hey! You will regret saying that when you taste my pancakes and realize they're the best pancakes you will ever eat!" Ash exclaimed a bit offended.

"But you just said it's your mother's recipe." Gary kept the teasing.

"Keep that attitude and you won't eat anything this morning," Ash said pretending to be mad.

"You do realize I can just grab some cereal or some cookies with milk, right?" Gary laughed.

"Ha-ha!" Ash exclaimed in a fake tone.

"Alright, I'm sorry, I'll give your pancakes a chance." Gary surrendered as he started reading the newspaper.

"You won't regret it!" Ash exclaimed overjoyed.

 **-o-**

Ash and Gary had had a lovely breakfast together, just the two of them. That could have counted as the second sign, things usually mess up after you think they are perfect.

"So, any plans for today?" Ash asked Gary with curiosity.

"Why?" Gary asked nervous.

Ash laughed. "It's just that since today I'm not going out with Misty and Brock, I was wondering if we could hang out, you should really get out of the lab at least for once; I know that you have a very important research but please, I know your grandpa would agree that even the greatest minds need to take a break." Ash smiled.

Gary blushed, for both Ash asking him out… sorta, and for Ash telling him indirectly he was one of the great minds in the world… even Gary Oak would be flattered for comments like that.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. He would need to be calm in order to lie to Ash… that would have been the third sign, lies always find the way to be discovered.

"I actually have an important dinner with some people at Viridian's City Scientific Community, VCSC for short," Gary said, totally making the dinner and the VCSC up, none of them really existed.

"A dinner? Sounds like fun," Ash said with a smile.

"I wish I could invite you there, but I couldn't even get an invitation for my grandpa." Gary lied again.

"Yeah, I understand, but hey, that dinner is at night, we can still do something early," Ash insisted.

Gary did want to spend some time with Ash but he knew it wasn't the brightest idea.

"I have to check my research because the VCSC will take a look on it tonight. I'm sorry, Ash," Gary sighed.

"Oh, yeah, I understand… I guess I will help my mother with the house anyway, I really should get involved, maybe I'll ask her to remodel my room." Ash sounded excited despite Gary's rejection.

"Good luck on that." Gary smiled.

"Thanks! Good luck on that dinner too!" Ash exclaimed.

 **-o-**

He felt awful for having to lie to Ash, but he didn't want things between them to get tense, they were finally able to sit in the same room, alone, without feeling the gravity was ten times stronger.

And it's not like Gary wanted to have a date with Dawn either… but he would feel even more awful for cancelling on her, she was a really good friend of him after all.

Gary spend the rest of the day in his laboratory, trying to canalize his stress towards something useful, while Ash went with his mom to Viridian City, to buy some stuff the builders needed for the house.

 **-o-**

Gary was getting ready for his… date… with Dawn. He had already taken a shower, it was still early, around 7:00pm, but he had always been the person to arrive first to any event. Gary was shirtless, his chest still wet and his towel covering from his waist down. He walked to the closet to find some shirt to wear when his cellphone started ringing.

It was Ash… and that would have been the fourth sign, because Ash had never called him on his mobile before.

Without knowing, Gary answered the phone call, thinking that Ash was going to wish him luck on his false dinner at the false VCSC.

"Hey, Ashy-boy," Gary answered with surprise.

"Can I know what you want by asking Dawn out?" Ash went straight to the point, his tone was very serious and still, not a single doubt in his voice.

Gary was petrified by Ash's voice. How on Earth did Ash find out about them?

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

None of them said anything for the following ten seconds, which felt like a minute because the tension between them had finally come back, even if they were miles away and just connected by telephonic wires.

"I'm… I'm sorry but I don't understand your question," Gary answered, his tone getting as serious as Ash's… he got mad. "What I want?" He asked confused.

"Please, have guts and answer," Ash demanded angrily… more like… jealous… but well, both emotions are usually paired.

Gary laughed.

"It's just that… I don't understand why you are so mad about it," Gary said lying onto his bed. "What's the big deal of me going out with a friend I haven't seen in forever?"

"Because you know she has feelings for you, and you will only play with her heart, you are just giving her high hopes and when you reject her, you will break her heart. That's why I'm mad, because she's one of my best friends and I don't want her to be your toy." Ash was pissed, he was doing an excellent, though unconscious, job to hide his jealousy behind his anger.

"My toy? Excuse me?" Gary asked furious. "So, by going out with her, to have a friendly dinner, she will think I have feelings for her?" Gary asked in a sarcastic tone.

"You know she can misunderstood your intentions."

"The only one who is misunderstanding things, is you, now if you excuse me, I have to get ready for my date with Dawn." Gary smiled sarcastically and he immediately ended the call, to avoid Ash for saying anything else, and to piss him even more.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He looked to the roof for a few seconds… and he smiled.

"You are so jealous, Ashy-boy," Gary said feeling triumphant. "You have feelings for me." Gary whispered to the air, still smiling.

 **-o-**

Gary took his sports car and drove it to Viridian City to pick Dawn. He had planned first on taking a cab but Ash's phone call pushed him to take his sports car instead.

Gary waited for Dawn in her hotel's lobby. She got out of the elevator right on time. She was wearing a blue dress and black high heels, she looked gorgeous.

Gary was wearing a blue blazer, a white shirt, and black slacks. Somehow, he had an unconscious sense of fashion and he knew the blue blazer would match Dawn's hair, but now, it would perfectly match her dress and her hair.

"Wow!" Gary was speechless. "You look so beautiful," he sighed.

"Thank you! I love your blazer!" She exclaimed happily and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.

At that moment, Gary wanted nothing but revenge against Ash… and he had the perfect plan to accomplish his goal.

"Our reservations are at 9:00pm, we still have an hour left, I was thinking if you would like to take a ride in my sports car." Gary smiled.

"A sports car? Oh my God!" She exclaimed astounded, Gary hadn't told her about his sports car on their video-calls.

"I know the perfect route, we should take the road from Viridian City to Pallet Town and back, it is full of trees and wild pokémon, plus the night view is gorgeous," Gary proposed.

"That sounds wonderful!"

"And you know what? We could go say hi to Ash and surprise him," Gary half smiled, half laughed.

Dawn got nervous, but why? Had she had something to do with Ash finding out about Gary's date with her? Gary was convinced of that, and that way, he would have a double revenge against them both.

"Sure! I'd love to see him!" She faked her overexcitement.

 **-o-**

Gary opened the door to the mansion without knocking, he knew Ash would be in the living room, watching TV. And he was.

"Hi!" Gary exclaimed with overexcitement.

"Gary!" Ash exclaimed standing up from the sofa.

Dawn entered the mansion after Gary.

"Dawn!" Ash exclaimed confused.

"Hey, Ash!" Dawn ran to Ash and gave him a big hug. "Don't tell Gary about our small meeting this afternoon," she whispered to Ash's ear.

Ash was confused but he agreed with Dawn by not telling Gary about their small encounter. When Ash was helping his mother to buy the things she needed for the house, he ran into Dawn at the streets of Viridian City and she told him about her date with Gary.

What Ash didn't know was that Dawn had some kind of ulterior motive.

"Doesn't she look beautiful?" Gary asked Ash.

"Yeah, that dress is gorgeous," Ash answered admiring Dawn's attire for the night.

"Thank you!" Dawn blushed.

"I mean, I am going to be the envy of everyone at the restaurant, she looks like a model!" Gary said with overexcitement.

At that moment, Ash knew Gary was trying to make him jealous. Really?

"Oh, Gary, stop it!" Dawn blushed even more.

"Well, we just came in to say hi, good night!" Gary exclaimed taking Dawn's hand and running back to the entrance.

"What? We're leaving so soon?" Dawn laughed as Gary dragged her out of the mansión.

"Good night!" Ash laughed as he saw Gary leave with Dawn, thinking how pathetic Gary was.

When Gary and Dawn left the mansion, Ash's smile faded away and he laid on the couch.

His face was full of concern now… Gary was on a date… with Dawn… two of his best friends were on a date… why couldn't he be happy for them? He was still in denial of his feelings for Gary after all… or he was scared to finally acknowledge the truth: he was jealous.

 **-o-**

Ash fell asleep on the couch, he didn't move after Gary and Dawn left, he was feeling down.

He was peacefully sleeping, which was something appealing because he hadn't had peace on his non-sleep life recently.

But Ash had always had a light sleep.

The door to the mansion opened slowly but making a lot of noise.

Ash opened his eyes, he knew it was Gary arriving late from his date with Dawn. Ash didn't want Gary to think he was the pathetic one for staying all night in the living room, so Ash quickly woke up and hid behind the sofa, where Gary wouldn't see him.

But Gary wasn't alone.

"Gary, you're going to wake everyone up! It's so late!" Dawn laughed.

Ash's eyes opened intensely, Gary brought Dawn home? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

"It's not that too late, Dawn, it's just midnight," Gary laughed.

Were they drunk? No, they weren't. Ash just knew it.

"So, will you walk me to my room?" Dawn asked in a weird tone.

She was staying at the mansion now? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

It's not that Ash wasn't happy about that, if Dawn stayed then they would have more time to chat and catch up… but that also meant Gary and Dawn would have more time to go to dates and stuff. Why did that bothered Ash so much?

"Sure, there's one available in the second floor," Gary answered.

"And where's your room?" Dawn asked curious.

Gary laughed. "Mine's at the third floor."

"Isn't there a room available there?"

She was totally flirting with him. Ash's cheeks reddened up all of a sudden.

Gary laughed again. "I'm sorry, Ash has the room next to mine."

"Oh yeah, Ash, is it me or was he totally jealous?" Dawn laughed and Gary laughed too.

Now Ash's whole face reddened up, he was so mad at both Gary and Dawn. Why would they think that? Why? Why? Why?

"Really?" Gary asked kind of enjoying the conversation.

Ash wanted so bad to get out of his hiding and confront them but he knew he would just acknowledge the fact that he was jealous, and that wasn't true… at least not to himself.

"Alright lady, you need some sleep because tomorrow is going to be a long day for you."

"I really wish I could have gotten you tickets," Dawn sighed.

"That's okay, I'll see you at my grandpa's dinner, won't I?"

"Of course!"

"Let me just turn off the lights." Gary walked to the lights switch, from where, if he turned, he would see Ash hiding behind the sofa, but fortunately, Gary didn't turn and he didn't see Ash hiding.

Gary and Dawn left the living room, taking the stairs, and disappearing from Ash's view.

Ash stood up, full of anger and determined to confront Gary once and for all.

 **-o-**

Ash went up the stairs and he saw Gary and Dawn in the hall. He hid behind a wall as he eavesdropped on their conversation.

"I had a great time," Dawn said, she was holding Gary's hands with hers.

"Me too, we should totally do it again sometime." Gary smiled.

And they hugged.

When Ash saw the hug, his face got all red, unfortunately there was no one around to see him like that.

Dawn entered her temporary room, at least that was what Ash hoped, she wasn't going to stay at the mansion during Ash's final week there, no, she couldn't do that to him! But why?

Gary walked along the hall and then he took the stairs to the third floor. Ash quietly followed him, making sure he didn't make any noise so he wouldn't catch Dawn's attention from inside her room.

Ash took the stairs after Gary and when he emerged on the third floor's hall, Gary wasn't there, he had finally entered his room.

Ash walked, considering just going to his own room and let the night end… but no, something inside him pulled him to Gary, like a magnemite.

Ash stood in front of Gary's door and he put his ear next to the door, trying to listen to Gary doing anything, but Gary's room was quiet, maybe he had already gone to bed.

But Ash didn't care if Gary was in bed, Gary was going to listen to him.

Fortunately, (or not), Gary hadn't closed the door from the inside, so Ash opened it and surprised Gary shirtless, about to take off his jeans.

Gary didn't act surprised, he wasn't surprised, he was rather annoyed, so he took the conversation with sarcasm.

"Yes, captain?" Gary asked Ash.

Ash froze for a couple of seconds, seeing Gary's naked chest and his jeans unzipped, he could catch a glimpse of Gary's gray underwear.

Ash closed the door behind him as he breathed in and breathed out. Then he walked and faced Gary's closet, the one where he kept his action figures, giving Gary his back because well… it was obvious he didn't want to see Gary undress… did he?

"Nothing, I just listened to both of you arriving and I was wondering if you were alright," Ash said smiling.

Gary laughed, not moving, not zipping his jeans, not putting a t-shirt on, nothing. "Okay," he said rolling his eyes, knowing Ash was totally jealous. "So, how am I?" Gary teased.

Ash turned for a moment to see Gary again, he was still shirtless and with his boxers taking a peak of the room.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Gary… I didn't want to come into your room like this… but it's just that… I think these are not hours to be coming to the house, it's too late." Ash hid his blush.

"Yeah, you're right, it's late," Gary agreed as he walked closer to Ash. "But we could have gotten back really late, but Dawn has that coordinators event tomorrow and I couldn't allow her not to sleep for at least six hours," Gary said trying to anger Ash.

And he did. "What are you doing, Gary?" Ash gave Gary a despise look.

"I was just trying to undress and put on my pajamas but with you here, I don't think that would be appropriate." Gary laughed as he walked to his desk.

"Don't act like a fool!" Ash walked to Gary and he yelled at him.

"Hey, hey, calm down," Gary said now surprised to see Ash this angry.

"Don't act like a fool, Gary, you know what I'm talking about."

"No, not really, I swear, I'm lost, I have no idea what you're talking about, Ash," Gary said watching his tone so he wouldn't anger Ash more.

"Why do you ask Dawn out? What do you want from her?" Ash finally asked what he wanted to know.

Gary was confused.

"Don't make that face! And stop playing with fire because you're going to get burned!" Ash exclaimed madly.

Gary laughed intensely.

"You think… you think I want her for sex?" Gary asked with a laugh.

"You just said it."

"I can't believe this… you really think that of me?" Gary said ofended.

"Well, it's not that you're going to see her very much to have a relationship, you're from different regions and please don't say you would visit her because that's not posible, she's traveling around the world and I know how a workaholic you are, you wouldn't leave your research for one day."

Gary laughed again. "Oh, Ash, you are getting crazy over this. Or is it just that it's late? Dawn is my friend! And just so you know, she was the one who asked me out!"

Ash froze.

"What? You didn't expect that, did you? You think no one would ask me out? Why? I am not bad-looking, I come from a wealthy family, I am funny, I am…"

"Stop!" Ash yelled. "I warn you, Gary Oak, get away from Dawn once and for all!"

And at that moment, Dawn opened the door to Gary's room.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

Gary awkwardly moved away from Ash, and Ash turned to see Dawn by the door, completely shocked.

"Tell me Ash, if Gary doesn't get away from me, what are you going to do?" Dawn closed the door and walked to Ash, asking him that question with anger.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"What? Now you're in mute?" Dawn said angrily. "What do you want? Separate us? Why? Gary and I are friends, just like you and me! Or so that was what I thought! You gotta have a good reason, tell us, tell us now!" She screamed.

"Okay, okay, Dawn, please, calm down." Gary walked to Dawn.

"No! I don't want you to say anything, I want an answer from him!" She pointed to Ash, who was still breathing in and breathing out.

"If you calm down, I will tell you what's going on," Gary said acting cool.

Dawn breathed in. Dawn breathed out.

"Okay," she said.

"Ash is just worried, he is worried that you are going to develop feelings for me as we go out, and then you'll have to leave to continue your coordinator travel around the world, you won't see me much and that'll break your heart," Gary falsely explained to Dawn as Ash, still shocked, just nodded.

"Develop feelings for you?" Dawn laughed. "And who are you to tell me who to like or who not to like?" She faced Ash with anger.

"I'm just worried! Gary's not the romantic type! He is obsessed with his job! He doesn't care about his friends! Do you think he will care about you? For God's sake, she sends away the people he cares about! Do you know he sent his best friend away? Do you?" Ash said desperate.

Gary's eyes opened in shock when he heard the things Ash said. None of them were true at all… maybe the job part, just a bit, but the part about him sending Tracey away wasn't the truth at all, hell, Ash didn't know a single thing about that and he had no right to have an opinion about it.

Now Gary walked and sided with Dawn.

"Well, I don't care, and don't you worry, because I know what decisions to make and I know what's best for me."

"Perfect!" Ash exclaimed.

"And if I have feelings for Gary, it's none of your business, or what? Are you jealous, do you have feelings for me, Ash?" She challenged him.

"Of course not!"

"So what? Do you have feelings for him? Are you gay or something?" She laughed.

Now Gary trembled. Was Ash finally going to admit his feelings for him?

"What? You're crazy!" Ash exclaimed walking to the door.

That wasn't the best answer.

"Osh! Wait!" Dawn exclaimed.

Ash turned for a moment.

"The next time you have something to tell me, say it on my face!" She screamed.

And Ash stormed out of the room.

 **-o-**

Ash entered his room, he didn't turn on the lights, he went straight to his bed… and he started crying. He had finally realized, and accepted the fact, that he was in love with Gary Oak.

 **-o-**

"God! I can't believe him! He wasn't like that when we traveled together!" Dawn exclaimed. She was sitting on Gary's bed and Gary had already zipped his jeans and put on a t-shirt. Unconsciously, he didn't want her to see him like that… but why hadn't he zipped his jeans and put on a t-shirt when Ash was alone with him?

"You have to understand that even if he sounded crazy, he was just worried about you, he was right, if you and I ever… dated as a couple… a long-distance relationship wouldn't be the best for you, would it?" Gary asked trying to defend Ash.

"Do you think I have feelings for you? I have a boyfriend!" Now she sounded mad at Gary.

"You do? Then why didn't you tell him that? That could have saved us the entire akward fight-conversation from moments ago!" Now Gary sounded mad at Dawn.

Dawn breathed in. Dawn breathed out.

"Please, calm down and stop being mad, that won't do you any good… you have to sleep peacefully for tomorrow, I know you have a big important event coming on, and you have to look radiant." Gary smiled. "Come here." He opened his arms and gave her a hug.

He was now calmer, knowing that Dawn had a boyfriend. Did she really? If she did… then what was her ulterior motive? What did she want by asking Gary out?

As Gary hugged her, she smiled with satisfaction.

 **-o-**

A few minutes after their incident, and after Dawn had left Gary's room to hers downstairs, Gary left his room and knocked on Ash's door, hoping they could talk things out.

But Ash didn't answer. He was probably asleep, but Gary kept on insisting and he knocked the door a few more times. Still, he didn't get a response from Ash.

Inside his room, Ash was still crying, his pillow was wet, his heart broken. He did want to open the door and talk to Gary, but would he understand that he had feelings for him? Ash thought he wouldn't, so he pretended to be asleep.

Gary finally surrendered, feeling bad about what had happened, and he went to his room.

None of them slept peacefully that night, not like Dawn, who slept like a baby.

 **-o-**

The next morning, Gary woke up as early as usual and he got out of his room, still wearing his pants and a white t-shirt. He went down to the kitchen and as usual, he was the first one up, he put some cereal with milk and banana on a bowl and instead of having breakfast there in the kitchen, he took the bowl and a spoon upstairs.

When he got to the hall of the third floor, he considered having breakfast in his bedroom… but instead, he sat on the hall, lying his back on the wall, just in front of Ash's door. He was determined to finally talk things out with him.

But what things exactly? It wasn't a mystery to Gary that he had feelings for Ash… but over the past days, he didn't exactly think of them because well, he had been involved in his grandma's drama, his research, and his new sports car.

But right there, in front of Ash's room, with the bowl of cereal resting on his lap, he started to think about his feelings.

He wasn't scared anymore, he wasn't terrified anymore. It had taken him almost two weeks to finally accept that in the matters of the heart, the brain has no power. He wasn't exactly happy either, because he felt awful about what had happened the night before with Dawn. Gary wasn't expecting Dawn to confront Ash that way.

Even so, Gary wasn't at all sure that Ash felt the same way, because nothing seemed what it seemed when you talked about Ash Ketchum. Ash could be the type of person to get jealous of someone because they have other friends thinking that the friendship they developed with them could be better than the one he could offer, not because they had romantic feelings. After all, Gary knew Dawn was one of Ash's greatest friends and it could be natural that Ash was threatened that Gary could stole her from him.

But what if it wasn't that complicated? What if Ash did really have feelings for Gary? Even if Ash had feelings for Gary, what if he was terrified? Just like he had been at first, when he found out about his feelings for Ash.

Gary Oak arrived to a single conclusion: being in love sucks.

Ash opened the door of his bedroom, his hair was all messy and he didn't look fine.

"Hey!" Gary exclaimed awkwardly, leaving the bowl of cereal on the floor as he stood up.

Ash didn't say a thing and he walked along the hall to the stairs.

"Hey, Ash!" Gary exclaimed grabbing Ash's black t-shirt.

"Let go!" Ash exclaimed angrily, slapping Gary's hand.

And it hurt.

"Leave me alone!" Ash yelled going down the stairs before Gary saw him crying.

Now Gary's heart was broken.

Gary took his bowl of cereal and locked himself in his room.

 **-o-**

Ash spent most of the morning with his mom, when she woke up, he helped her make breakfast and they ate breakfast together with professor Oak. Then, Delia had to go to the supermarket to buy everything she needed for the dinner professor Oak was going to host that night, and Ash went with her.

When they got back to the mansion and stored everything in the fridge, around 10:00am, Delia had to leave to the Ketchum residency, and Ash followed her as well.

Delia and her son were walking the streets of Pallet Town when she said something that had been worrying here since that morning.

"So, you're leaving next week," Delia said in a melancholic tone.

Ash hadn't realized it had already been 3 weeks since he had arrived to Pallet Town.

"I guess so," Ash answered.

"You guess? Does that mean you're staying a bit more? Or that you're leaving sooner?" Delia asked worried the answer could be the second one.

"I still don't know," Ash sighed.

"Is something bothering you, sweetie?"

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. He wanted to tell his mother… he knew she would understand… but he didn't want to be a burden.

"I'm just tired, I have no idea why, I've been like that since the past week," Ash lied.

"Well, you've been out all day with Misty and Brock every day for almost two weeks now, it's not weird you're exhausted." Delia giggled.

Ash laughed a little, that's how he would have reacted if what he said was true.

"So, why don't you guys go somewhere relaxing tomorrow? You could go to the beach," Delia suggested.

"Actually… it's not a bad idea," Ash said giving the idea a thought, he had always loved the beach and he could really relax.

"I'm always happy to help." Delia smiled.

 **-o-**

Ash and his mom got back to the mansion around noon, Delia had told Ash that Brock would arrive around 3:00pm so they could have dinner ready by 7:00pm, one hour earlier (because dinner would be around 8:00pm).

Delia said she was tired of spending all the morning in the supermarket and then in the Ketchum residency and that she would need more energy to make that dinner, so after having lunch with Ash, she went straight to her room to take a deserved nap.

It was around 12:45pm and Ash hadn't seen neither Gary nor Dawn. That's when he remembered Dawn was supposed to have a coordinator event in Viridian City that day, at first, he thought Gary was with her but then he remembered he had heard Dawn apologize to Gary for not getting him tickets, so that meant the coordinator even was kind of exclusive if even Dawn couldn't bring friends over.

Ash was about to follow his mother's steps and take a nap too, but then professor Oak entered the kitchen after spending all the morning in his lab, he was just about to have lunch.

"Hi, professor!" Ash greeted him.

"Hi, Ash, what did your mom make? It smells glorious!" Samuel exclaimed walking to the stove.

"If you think that of this improvised meal, wait until you taste what she is going to make for dinner," Ash said proud of his mom.

"I can't wait!" Samuel exclaimed, excited like a child with candy.

"So, professor, how is Gary doing with his research?" Ash asked out of curiosity.

"He's just about to finish, I was hoping he could finish today but he had to go with Dawn to an event, I thought you had gone with them," Samuel revealed.

And at that moment, Ash got so mad at both Gary and Dawn.

But the truth was… Dawn did get tickets… but just one… and she wanted to invite Ash first… but well, that had changed the moment she entered Gary's room the night before.

And speaking of the devil, Gary and Dawn entered the mansion just then.

"Gary, Dawn, come here, we're about to have lunch!" Samuel invited them.

"It smells delicious!" Dawn exclaimed getting into the kitchen.

"I already ate, I'm going to take a nap, please, enjoy your meal." Ash smiled leaving before Gary and Dawn could say hi to him.

Ash took the stairs and when he took the hall of the second floor, he was stopped by Gary, again, he took his t-shirt.

"So, what? You're never going to speak to me again?" Gary asked annoyed.

Ash didn't turn to see Gary.

"That's the point," Ash answered. "Could you please let me go?"

"Ash, please, I'm sorry."

"Sorry? About what? You did nothing wrong. I was childish, I shouldn't have meddled into your lives." Ash laughed with sarcasm, still his back in front of Gary.

"I… I didn't expect her to react like that… you know what I'm talking about." Gary meant Dawn's accusations about Ash having feelings for Gary, and particularly the word gay, he knew Ash was hurt.

"It's okay, my behavior kind of suggested that," Ash said holding back his tears.

"Can you forgive me?" Gary asked feeling sorry and still holding Ash's t-shirt with his fingers.

"Let me go, please." Ash ignored the question.

"Ash, I'm so sorry, you have to understand…"

"I said let me go!" Ash exclaimed turning quickly to take Gary's wrist and he pushed him to the wall.

Ash ran to the other side of the hall, to take the stairs to the third floor. But Gary wasn't done yet, he ran after Ash.

"Ash, please! Stop!" Gary yelled but Ash was faster than him.

And Ash arrived first to his room and he closed the door.

Gary knocked the door.

"Ash, open up! Please!"

"Go away!"

"What do I have to do to prove I'm sorry?"

"Just leave!"

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

And he left.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Ash didn't remember how long it took him to fall asleep after he locked himself in his room. He woke up around 3:30pm, that was good, that meant Brock was already there and he could really use the distraction to stop thinking about Gary. Ash ran to the first floor and then to the kitchen to see in fact, Brock helping Delia with cutting some vegetables.

"Hey, buddy!" Brock exclaimed happily, wearing a pink apron. Ash had always admired how Brock could wear the most feminine colors and still look all like a man.

That's when Ash got curious, did Brock have a woman in his life already? He was five years older than Ash, meaning he was already 22 years old.

"Hey, man!" Ash said entering the kitchen and taking a seat as his mother and Brock continued their duties.

"I thought you had left with Gary and Dawn to the pokémon coordinators event," Delia said without knowing her son didn't want to think about that thing in particular.

"Not really, I wasn't in the mood." Ash smiled, lying.

So why had Gary and Dawn come back to the mansion around noon? Just to have lunch and then to head back to the pokémon coordinators event? Weren't they supposed to give you food on those kind of events? Or did Gary just bring Dawn to piss Ash more? If he did it, then he wasn't that sorry.

Anyway, Ash wasn't in the mood to talk about it, so he changed the topic to a one he was really interested in.

"So, Brock, you got a girlfriend?" Ash asked with curiousity.

Brock almost cut his finger as he was caught off guard by Ash when he asked him that question.

"What? Why would you ask me that? Who told you?" Brock asked nervous.

"Who told me? Oh my God! You do have a girlfriend!" Ash jumped in excitement.

"Is that true? Brock, I'm so happy for you!" Delia exclaimed joining her son in his excitement.

Brock realized he had revealed more than what Ash knew, and he had to confess it all now.

"It's just that we wanted to keep our relationship a secret… she kind of believes telling everyone about a relationship means bad luck," Brock admitted.

"What? That's nonsense! No one should be afraid of saying they're in love!" Delia exclaimed.

No one should be afraid of saying they're in love. Those words echoed into Ash's mind… and heart.

"I'm in love," Ash revealed all of a sudden but his face was emotionless.

There was an awkward silence in the room only to be followed by a greater excitement.

"Oh my God! You are?" Delia exclaimed with her jaw dropped, she was so happy to hear that coming from her son's mouth.

"So, who's the girl?" Brock asked keeping it casual, and changing the topic of the conversation from his secret romance to Ash being in love.

"What?" Ash asked realizing what he had done. There was no coming back now.

"You just said you're in love," Delia said with sparkle in her eyes.

"I didn't say that!" Ash said blushing.

"Of course you did, man!" Brock said with a smile.

"No, I'm not!" Ash exclaimed standing up and at that moment, someone rang the bell to the mansion. "If you excuse me, I'll go get the door and could you please not say anything about what I just said?"

"Don't worry, honey." Delia smiled.

"Fine, thank you!" Ash said in a serious tone but inside he was burning in embarrassment, and then he walked to the door.

"He's just in denial," Brock whispered to Delia.

"I know, I still can't believe my sweet baby is in love," Delia sighed with a smile on her face.

Ash opened the door to see a man with a bouquet of red roses in his arms.

"Special delivery," the man said with a smile.

"Okay," Ash said confused of who was sending flowers to who, were they for his mom? Was his mom dating someone?

Ash signed the delivery and took the flowers. He quickly noticed a small note and took it.

"Oh my God! You got flowers?" Delia asked running to the living room.

Ash quickly read the note without showing it to his mom who was approaching him.

The note said "I'm sorry."

Ash blushed. Gary had sent him those flowers! Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

"I don't know what you're talking about, mother," Ash said hiding the note quickly in the back pockets of his jeans. "These are anonymous, I bet they are for you." Ash gave the flowers to his mother.

"What? You have a secret lover, Delia? I guess we all have our love secrets." Brock laughed approaching Ash and Delia.

"What? No! I don't have a secret nothing!" Delia said confused.

"Then I guess they must be from profesor Oak to Agatha, maybe he will give them to him tonight at dinner," Ash said trying to convince Brock and his mother of that.

"No!" Delia exclaimed surprised and angry at the same time.

"That makes sense," Brock agreed.

"I can't believe this!" Delia exclaimed now angry, tossing the roses to the floor, and she left to the kitchen.

"What's wrong with her?" Ash asked confused.

"Women, we'll never understand them, am I right?" Brock laughed.

Ash took the flowers from the floor.

"I guess I'll just go hide these and give them to professor Oak later," Ash said.

"Alright, I'll go back to the kitchen, wish me luck, I hope your mother doesn't release her wrath on me." Brock joked.

"Good luck!" Ash exclaimed with a laugh.

As he held those flowers in his arms, he sighed, feeling in love. Gary had sent him those flowers.

Gary had sent him those flowers.

Ash returned to being mad and he went straight to his room. When he entered, the left the flowers on a table.

Gary had crossed the line. Who did he think he was to send flowers to Ash?

Could it be possible… that Gary felt the same way about him?

Or was Gary just desperate for Ash's forgiveness he would do anything to get it? Like shaming Ash by sending him roses?

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

He had to get rid of those flowers. He opened the window and threw them to the yard, hoping they would wither before dinner.

 **-o-**

After his second nap that day, Ash woke up around 5:00pm. He got out of his room, planning on walking around Pallet Town to get rid of his stress, but he wasn't expecting to see Gary just about to enter his room next door.

"Hey," Gary said with a smile.

Ash blushed, remembering the roses. Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Hi," Ash said trying to be polite.

Gary smiled, he thought Ash had finally forgiven him.

"So, how's been your day?" Gary asked curious.

Ash put his hands into his pockets, trying to remain and act cool in front of the guy who had sent him roses.

"Pretty shitty, actually," Ash said nervously.

"Oh!" Gary exclaimed worried.

"That's okay, I guess after all those wonderful days I've had with Brock and Misty, one of my days had to be shitty just to remind me, life isn't perfect."

"I'm sorry to hear that, I wish you could have come to Dawn's event," Gary sighed.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't have been in the mood anyway," Ash sighed. "Anyway, I guess I'll see you at dinner."

"Sure." Gary smiled.

"Okay," Ash said awkwardly and he walked to the stairs to the second floor.

"Ash!" Gary exclaimed without moving.

"Yes?" Gary turned to see Gary.

"Are we… are we good?"

Ash didn't respond and he took the stairs, but in the inside, he was melting and he wanted so much to thank Gary for those beautiful roses, but why if Gary asked him about where he had placed him? Could he tell him he threw them to the garden and that probably some pokémon already ate them? What if Gary thought of those beautiful roses as their friendship and Ash had destroyed them?

Gary felt awful. Hadn't Ash gotten his roses? Or had Ash said he had had a shitty day because of Gary's roses? Gary thought about what he had done and he realized it had been such a pathetic idea, he totally regretted it now, he covered his face in shame, still holding the tears that might suggest that Ash was never going to forgive him.

 **-o-**

Ash took a long walk around Pallet Town, it took him about an hour to circle the town from the Oak mansion and to return. When he did, he entered the mansion and the smell of the food was already covering the first floor.

Misty was there, sitting in the living room, wearing something casual, blue jeans and a beautiful red blouse that matched her hair.

"Hey," she greeted Ash with enthusiasm.

"Hi." Ash smiled to her.

Suddenly, Dawn emerged from the kitchen with two glasses of what seemed like cocktails and walked to the living room.

"You will never taste a cocktail like this, here," Dawn said proudly giving Misty one of the cocktails she was carrying.

"Thank you! Oh, Ash, I just met Dawn and she is amazing!" Misty exclaimed as Dawn sat next to her.

"I know, right?" Ash asked a bit nervous because his situation with Dawn wasn't the best right then.

"Oh, stop it!" Dawn exclaimed with a blush. "Misty is the amazing one."

"Well, I guess I'll go get a shower and then I'll get dressed, see you at dinner, girls," Ash said awkwardly.

"Sure, good luck there!" Misty exclaimed with a laugh.

"Thank you?" Ash asked laughing and he took the stairs and he left.

"Now that Ash is gone, I have some dirt on him," Dawn said proudly.

"What?" Misty asked with a laugh.

And unfortunately for Ash, Dawn told Misty the whole story (or at least her own version) of what had happened the night before with Ash, Gary, and her.

 **-o-**

Ash took a shower and he got dressed casually, but he didn't go to the living room in the first floor right away. He looked at the clock and it was just 6:40pm, the dinner would start at 8:00pm. Ash really wasn't in the mood to be next to Dawn, and neither did he wanted to be next to Gary, he neither wanted to be next to Brock because he knew Brock would storm him with questions about who he was in love with, after all, Brock loved romance.

Misty was the only one he was comfortable with but she was with Dawn and she had probably already told her what had happened the night before between them and Gary, so yeah, Ash didn't feel comfortable with anyone his age in the mansion, he would wait until professor Oak came home with Agatha or until his mother got ready to be with them during the whole dinner, and he felt a bit pathetic for that.

 **-o-**

Gary dressed a bit more formal than the rest but not that much. He was wearing some black slacks and a purple shirt with the top button unbuttoned just to add something casual to his attire.

Gary went down the stairs and he saw the girls laughing and laughing as they drank cocktails. He laughed, thinking they were already drunk.

"Dinner hasn't even started and you guys are already drunk," Gary smirked approaching them.

"She is so funny!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Oh, please! You are the funny one!" Misty exclaimed.

"Maybe you are a bit drunk, can I have these?" Gary asked taking the cocktails from them. "How many of these have you had?"

"Just four! We're not drunk!" Dawn laughed.

"We're just two girls having fun, that's it."

"Well, I won't take the risk, so no more cocktails until dinner is served." Gary felt like the host of the party.

"You are no fun!" Dawn and Misty exclaimed at the same time and when they realized it, they laughed together.

Gary laughed too and he went to the kitchen to get rid of the cocktails.

It was already 7:20pm, Delia wasn't in the kitchen anymore which meant dinner was ready and that she had gone to her room to get ready for the event.

Gary went to the backyard to feed the pokémon dinner, as usual. But when the pokémon were making a line to get the food from Gary's hand, he caught a glimpse of something red in the grass, near the mansion.

"Just wait a second, people," Gary said walking to the red thing he saw on the grass.

And he recognized them… the red roses he had sent Ash. He looked up and he saw the window from Ash's room was just above the place where the roses were.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

So, Ash was never going to forgive him.

He got exhausted all of a sudden, he got back to the pokémon food station and tried to forget everything as he fed the pokémon, their smiles when they got dinner really helped Gary to forget his pain… until Ash's Pikachu thanked him for dinner.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu exclaimed happily as he ran with his bowl of food to a place near a tree were Gary's umbreon and other pokémon were gathered.

If his umbreon and Ash's pikachu could be friends, why couldn't he and Ash?

 **-o-**

It was finally 8:00pm and Ash decided to leave his room, he wasn't even hungry but he knew he had to go to that dinner, he was really happy for professor Oak and his new relationship with Agatha, even if he knew Gary's grandmother was alive.

Ash went down the stairs to the living room to see everyone walking to the dining room, just in time.

"Ash! Come here!" Samuel said excitedly as he held Agatha's hand.

"Hi!" Ash greeted both Agatha and Samuel with a smile.

"Young trainer," Agatha smiled a little.

"Please, dinner is served!" Delia exclaimed from the dining room.

"We don't want her to get angry, believe me," Ash said with a laugh and the old couple laughed too.

Everyone was on their seats. Misty next to Brock, who was next to Dawn, who was next to Gary, who was next to an empty chair, which was next to Delia, who was next to two empty chairs and which were next to Misty.

Samuel and Agatha took the two empty chairs between Delia and Misty, and Ash had to take the chair between his mother and Gary.

"I want to say something before we start," Samuel said standing up and raising a glass of wine.

Everyone looked at him with smiles, they all admired professor Oak after all.

Ash suddenly felt a hand on his tight… it was Gary's!

Ash trembled and he quietly but quickly took Gary's hand away from his tight, slapping it.

"I'm sorry," Gary said in a very low voice only Ash could hear.

"I want to thank Delia and Brock first, for making this wonderful dinner we're about to taste," professor Oak said smiling, Delia and Brock felt really proud. "I also want to thank you all for coming, you're like my family," Oak added with emotion. "My grandson, thank you for being an amazing young man," he said with a few tears on his face. "And finally, I want you all to know that this woman who is sitting next to me," Oak pointed at Agatha, "makes me very happy."

"Cheers!" Gary exclaimed raising his glass.

"Cheers!" Dawn followed Gary.

"Cheers!" Everyone else, including Delia despite her own reasons, said in unison.

Everyone clapped and they finally started having dinner together.

And dinner was delicious!

The conversation during dinner was mostly about how professor Oak and Agatha had started dating, which was a very interesting one.

"Can you please forgive me?" Gary kept asking with his low voice to Ash during the conversation and Ash wouldn't answer to him at all.

Everyone laughed about something but Ash and Gary didn't because they hadn't listened to the joke.

"I'm sorry about the roses, I didn't think that through," Gary apologized.

Ash took a sip from his glass of wine and remained silent.

"Gary, I was thinking if we could go see a movie tonight after dinner, the last movie at Viridian City's cinema is at 10:30pm, I think we could leave here around 10:00pm" Dawn whispered to Gary, loud enough for Ash to hear.

"I don't know, I might be a little too full to go to a cinema." The truth was, Gary didn't want to go out.

"That's fine, don't worry, we can go tomorrow."

Ash was about to burst, he decided he needed to take some fresh air.

"If you excuse me, I have to take this phone call." Ash stood up and took out his cellphone, pretending someone was calling him.

"Don't worry, Ash," professor Oak smiled.

Ash left the dining room, he walked to the kitchen and then he got out to the backyard.

"Now that Ash mentioned it, I forgot to send an e-mail, I'll be right back," Gary said standing up and he followed Ash.

Dawn smiled as she saw Gary follow Ash.

 **-o-**

Ash entered the lab and he turned on the lights. He breathed in. He breathed out.

He closed his eyes, thinking about everything that had happened so recently, so in a rush.

He walked around the lab, trying to digest everything that had happened. When he turned to the door, he wasn't expecting to see Gary come in.

Gary didn't say a word. He took a few steps. His face looked sorry, he was sorry. He gave Ash a weakly smile.

"Hi," Gary said walking closer to Ash, but they were still on opposite sides of the laboratory.

Ash froze. He couldn't move an inch. He was petrified. He was nervous.

"What… what do you… want?" Ash had trouble asking that single question with Gary in the room.

Gary sighed, he took his time to make it sound sorry, and tired.

"I want to hear your answer," Gary said putting his hands inside his pockets. "I don't even know if you have already forgiven me or not."

Ash looked down, he tried to control his temper, he was still mad at Gary for the incident, the fight they had had the night before, but at the same time, he had loved getting those roses from him.

"You have no limits, how dare you send me flowers?" Ash said angrily, still looking down, he knew the moment he saw Gary to his eyes, he would lose himself.

"It's just that… I don't know what to do anymore, to say I'm sorry, to ask for your forgiveness, Ash". Gary walked closer to Ash, who still was in denial with himself, looking everywhere but at Gary's direction.

"You're forgiven… don't you worry," Ash said hoping Gary would leave right then, it was all he wanted from him, Gary wanted Ash's forgiveness and he would leave him alone the moment he gave it to him, right?

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Gary stepped closer to Ash, who was still looking to the floor.

"Ash… you won't even look me into my eyes," Gary expressed, feeling hurt in his chest.

At that moment, Ash surrendered and finally lifted his head and focused his eyes on Gary's.

They exchanged a single but lasting look to each other.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

None of them said anything for ten seconds. It was Ash who finally broke the silence between.

"Stop it," Ash demanded, closing his eyes. "Cut it out… alright? You're… you're making me nervous," Ash sighed, opening his eyes and looking to Gary again.

"What am I doing? Ash." Gary was doing a great job on controlling his body from collapsing, but right then his body started shaking, he was no longer strong enough to hide his body language. "I'm not doing anything, Ash." He took a step closer, now Ash and Gary were just two steps apart.

Ash remained silent.

"It is very important to me… to know that we're good… to know that things between us… are fine," Gary sighed, penetrating his look into Ash's eyes.

"Seriously, Gary… stop it, stop this… okay? Please" Ash closed his eyes, trembling, his voice, his body, his hands, trembling.

Gary waited until Ash opened his eyes again. Gary took a step closer just as Ash took a step behind, their steps were so slow anyone could see they were synchronized in their movement. Gary took another step closer just as Ash took another step behind, but they would eventually reach a wall.

"I swear, Ash… that's what I'm trying to do… but I can't," Gary's voice was trembling too, he was scared as well, after all, it was something new and terrifying at the same time, for both of them, all those feelings that had been awakening during the last weeks.

Silence, they kept looking at each other, their faces full of terror but at the same time, filled with curiosity.

Gary reached out his hand and he started touching Ash's arm with it.

"Gary… what… what are you doing?" Ash asked about to collapse into his feelings.

Gary's hand slowly traveled along Ash's arm. Gary watched its trajectory.

"I… I have no idea," Gary answered.

Gary took another step closer, now they were just one step apart, but their faces were close enough that their noses would touch with any given movement.

"I'm… I'm playing with fire here… but I like it… I love it," Gary sighed.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Ash's eyes started to get wet… he was about to cry… he was trembling more than before… he couldn't move any step behind… Gary was getting closer, and closer, their noses touched.

"Stop it… Gary, stop it," Ash demanded as he closed his eyes.

Gary moved his hand gently to touch Ash's neck. He smiled a little, but both of them were still scared. There was no going back then. Gary could feel Ash's nervousness as he touched his neck.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary closed his eyes…. and he went for it. He kissed Ash.

Ash was caught off surprised, he let Gary kiss him but he didn't close his eyes right away. He was in shock… even if the kiss was feeling good… after a few seconds, he finally closed his eyes and gave himself in completely.

And even more than completely, Ash put his hands, both, around Gary's head and he hung up on his hairs as they kept kissing, synchronizing their lips as they opened slowly for them to take some air, eyes still closed.

They even started moving slowly around the lab, their movement in small circles, anticlockwise.

Ash hung up even stronger to Gary's hairs and then he let go of their kiss.

Both of them opened their eyes. Ash was still grabbing Gary's hairs intensely.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

They had passed the point of no return now.

They looked at each other for a few more seconds. No smiles yet, but no signs of regret even.

And finally, Ash let go of his hands from Gary's hairs… and Ash slapped Gary and he ran away from the lab.

Now it was Gary who stared at the floor, frozen, petrified. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. It had been a painful slap, but no more painful than the feeling of finally giving himself to Ash and surrendering to his feelings.

 **-o-**

Ash got out of the lab, his hand on his chest. He was desperate in need for fresh air. He slowly walked through the yard, ignoring the pokémon, most of them were asleep.

He put his hand on his mouth, to cover it. Then it was his fingers slowly touching his lips.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

What had he and Gary just done?

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

He started crying, after holding back the tears for so long. His trembling hands were now on his hair, and he held onto his hairs tighter, pulling them with strength just to cause himself more pain and cry even more.

 **-o-**

Gary walked to his desk. He touched his lips, sensing the taste of Ash's lips, which was just like the smell on Ash's t-shirt… the one he had smelled at the beginning of Ash's stay in the mansion.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

His laptop was there, along with some papers, some pencils, a stapler, an empty glass… and Gary started crying.

And out of nowhere, Gary used all his strength to throw away the table with all the things on it. The glass broke and his laptop was now on the floor with everything else.

And he kept crying.

 **-o-**

Ash entered the Oak mansion again, the only way in was through the kitchen and then through the dining room to go to the living room and take the stairs to his room.

Everyone was still there: Misty, Brock, Dawn, professor Oak, Agatha, and his mother.

"What happened?" Delia asked her son, worried, seeing him destroyed.

Everyone was concerned as well. Ash looked terrible, like he had seen a ghost or faced death.

"Good night everyone!" Ash exclaimed running to the living room and taking the stairs as fast as he could.

And Dawn smiled.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

Unlike Ash, Gary didn't go back to the mansion after the incident, he was just as devastated as him and he didn't want anyone to see him like that, so he locked himself in the lab until midnight.

He couldn't stop thinking about the kiss, about how passionate it had been, Gary couldn't stop from smiling. He had enjoyed it, Ash's lips tasted so good, Ash's lips felt amazing, Ash's hands pulling his hairs felt incredible.

So, why had Ash slapped him after the kiss? Gary knew he had caught Ash off guard, but he could feel Ash had enjoyed the kiss just as much as he did because their lips moved in perfect synchronization.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

There was a heavy sensation on his chest and he wanted to get rid of it, but he realized it was too late… he was in love with Ash Ketchum.

 **-o-**

Ash laid on his bed, looking to the ceiling, feeling his every single heartbeat, thinking about the kiss too. He was smiling, there was something about that kiss, something he hadn't felt before in the other kisses he had had… he felt his chest burning, a tingling sensation in his stomach and even something strange down his underwear.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Why did he have to slap Gary after such an amazing kiss? Why did he have to ruin it?

Ash was still scared, now he knew Gary felt the same way… and it was even more terrifying than when he wasn't sure if Gary felt the same way.

What was the next step? Were they going to start dating? Would they come out together? That's what was scaring Ash. Ash didn't want to do that, the coming out part, he was terrified because he had seen in TV a lot of bad things happening to men who dated men… and also, was that going to affect his dream of becoming a pokémon master? After all, the pokémon master was a role model young trainers yearned… what if the pokémon master was gay? Would the Pokémon Community allow it?

Ash's head was hurting intensely, he was crying, and his heart was still happy about kissing Gary… he was feeling hurt, scared and happy at the same time.

And those feelings knocked him down within minutes.

 **-o-**

Ash woke up the next day around 8:00am and he went to the kitchen to eat something before Gary could see him. Ash didn't have the strength to face Gary after what had happened the night before, not yet. So, he quickly made himself some cereal and went back to his room.

 **-o-**

Delia Ketchum entered her son's room without knocking on the door. Ash was standing by the window after eating breakfast.

"Hi, mom," Ash said with a smile.

"Good morning, sweetie," Delia said with a smile too.

What Ash didn't know, was that his mom wouldn't be smiling for the rest of the conversation.

"So, what's up? You want me to go with you to the house?" Ash asked walking to his mom.

"Ash, will you now tell me what happened last night?" Delia asked her son in a very serious tone.

Ash got nervous, he started sweating.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I… I have nothing to tell you," Ash evaded the question and he tried to walk back to the corner of his room… but Delia grabbed his wrist, not very gently.

"You were with Gary at the lab, weren't you? Did something happen between you two?" Ash saw something in his mom's face… something that he had never seen before… anger...

Delia Ketchum had never grounded her son, she had never hit him, she had practically been the perfect mother… so when Ash saw that expression in his mother's face, he got more than scared.

"Mom, please, let go of me! It hurts!" Ash exclaimed as his mom applied strength to holding his wrist.

Delia immediately let go of his son's wrist, she didn't want to hurt him. She knew he was scared, she saw him trembling and the look in his eyes expressed terror.

Delia breathed in. Delia breathed out.

"Something must have happened… you were crying when you got back," Delia said trying to use his son's fear of her to manipulate him into telling her the truth.

The thing was, Delia Ketchum really loved her son… and if anyone, anyone, no matter who, hurt him… well, she could quickly transfigure into a pyroar to defend her baby litleo.

And that's why she grabbed him again, she grabbed his wrist again with even more strength than before.

"Mom! Please, let go of me!" Ash exclaimed on the verge of tears.

"I'll stop when you tell me what happened in the lab! I am your mother! I can help you!"

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

There was nothing but silence between mother and son for a few seconds.

Ash didn't know what to do, it was his mother after all… so he decided to come clean.

"Alright," Ash sighed. "I'll tell you the truth," he added holding back his tears.

Delia let go of Ash's wrist and waited for an explanation.

"Gary told me about Christine," Ash revealed, he wasn't exactly lying.

Now Delia was petrified.

"And I just… it was such a sad story, I mean, Gary lost his parents one year and the other he lost his grandmother… but he didn't, his grandmother is alive," Ash acted sad and sounded convincing enough.

What Ash didn't know was that his mother had been covering Christine Oak for the last couple of years.

"Did Gary… tell you anything else?" Delia asked, worried that Gary might have told Ash she was involved in that family mess.

"Is there something more?" Ash asked confused.

"No… I… I just…"

"Mom… did you know this already?" Ash confronted his mother.

Delia was cornered, but she quickly came up with a good excuse.

"Yes… Gary told me when I started living here," she revealed.

"Huh?" Ash asked confused. "That's weird… when Gary told me, he said he had been holding that truth inside him for a long time." Now Ash was doubting his mother.

"Really? Well… it's been a huge load on him," Delia sighed.

"Yes," Ash said, still thinking his mother knew more, even more than Gary, about that subject.

"Well, I guess I shouldn't have worried at all," Delia smiled again. "If you want to come with me to the house, I'll leave in about an hour," she added as she left Ash's room.

And she immediately went to Gary's room.

 **-o-**

Delia knocked the door to Gary's room.

"Delia, hi," Gary said a little confused.

"We need to talk," Delia said entering Gary's room without an invitation.

"Alright," Gary laughed as he closed the door.

"Why did you tell my son about Christine?" Delia asked a little mad.

"What?" Gary asked confused.

"I know you told him yesterday while you were at the lab, I guess it was the reason you locked yourself in the lab until very late," Delia explained without mentioning the fact Ash cried about it... because Gary had no idea Ash had cried after their kiss.

Gary was completely perplexed.

"Don't act like you don't know anything! He just told me that! I confronted him about why he was crying, honestly, I first thought you had done something to him or said something to him that hurt him," Delia revealed.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to drag him into my own problems, but Ash sensed there was something going on with me, and well, he told me I could trust him… and you know what? I trust your son, Delia," Gary sighed, coming with the perfect continuation to Ash's lie about what really had happened in the lab the night before.

"It's okay, Gary… I know it's been a great burden on you… but you know what? I convinced your grandmother and she wants to see you tomorrow, how great is that?" Delia asked excitedly.

"You convinced her? Of what, exactly? Of telling me the whole truth?" Gary asked with his eyes completely opened.

"Maybe," Delia said not really sure.

"I'm tired, I'm tired of waiting, you know what? Go tell her I won't see her again until she decides to tell me everything, I lost my grandmother, let's see if she wants to lose her grandson," Gary's patience with his grandmother had finally reached its limit.

"But Gary…"

"I need to be alone, Delia, please," Gary sighed. He was now in between the drama of his grandmother and his kiss with Ash the night before.

"I'll tell her," Delia sighed walking to the door.

"No, you warn her!" Gary exclaimed about to cry.

"Okay," Delia said leaving the room.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

And he got out of his room, to knock on Ash's door.

 **-o-**

"Ash!" Gary exclaimed after knocking the door two times.

Ash was in his room, looking to the pokémon in the backyard through the window.

"What… do you want?" Ash asked without moving, his body shaking and trembling.

"Please, Ash, open the door, can I come in?" Gary asked breathing in and breathing out.

"No, you can't, I'm… I'm in my underwear," Ash lied, walking to the door.

"Well, put something on, a t-shirt, it doesn't matter."

"No, no, no, I… I'm feeling sick, Gary, I… I don't feel really well" Ash faked a cough and then another one… both of them sounded very convincing.

"That doesn't matter! Ash, I need us to talk, please!" Gary begged, sticking his forehead on the door.

"I'm… I'm sorry, I can't do it right now," Ash said touching the door with his hand.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Ash, please, open up, it's important," Gary sighed closing his eyes.

"No, I… I'll go take a shower, we'll talk later!" Ash said nervously, staying right there next to the door.

Gary didn't say anything back. But he was still there, on the other side of the door, his forehead on the door. Ash's hand was still on the door too.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Gary and Ash breathed out.

Gary started crying… and on the other side of the door… Ash too.

 **-o-**

Gary wasn't going to give up. If Ash was sick, then he was going to use his sickness to get to him and talk to him.

Gary went down the stairs to the kitchen, where Delia was reading a magazine.

"Delia, do you remember the remedy Ash made me when I was sick?" Gary asked her, hoping Ash had given her the recipe.

"Oh, yeah," Delia said remembering the ingredients in her mind, leaving the magazine on the table.

"Why don't we make it for Ash? He is sick, right?" With that question, Gary wanted to make sure Ash was sick, after all, Delia had been in his room earlier and she could tell him if Ash was telling the truth or not.

But Delia was smart, and if her son lied to Gary about being sick, well, then there was something he hadn't told her.

Then she remembered how Gary was caught off surprised when she told him she knew he had told Ash about Christine when they were in the lab the night before.

That's when Delia realized, maybe Gary had told Ash about Christine… but that had not happened the night before in the lab.

So, her son had lied to her.

"Oh yes, he was awful when I went to his room earlier, I was planning on taking him to the clinic but now that you bring up the remedy, I remember how miraculous it was for you," she smiled.

So, Ash wasn't lying about being sick, at least that's what Gary thought.

And why did her son lie to Gary about being sick? She was surely going to find out why, and once and for all, she was going to find out what had really happened at the lab the night before.

"So, what are the ingredients?" Gary asked walking to the fridge.

Delia happily told Gary the ingredients of the remedy and let him prepare the remedy himself. Gary actually enjoyed cooking that remedy because in the inside, he felt that by healing Ash, they could finally talk about the kiss and maybe, if life was sweet, talk about something more.

"Alright, I'll go get him the remedy," Gary said with the remedy in a small cup in hand.

"I think I'll go," Delia smiled grabbing the cup from Gary.

"No!" Gary exclaimed and he realized he sounded too worried.

"What's going on?" Delia asked confused.

"It's just that… I… I made it and I…"

"Don't worry, I'll tell Ash you made it for him," Delia said with a smile and she left the kitchen.

Gary couldn't do anything but maybe it was better that way, who could tell him Ash was going to let him into his room just by telling him he had the remedy? Maybe it was better if Delia told Ash that Gary had made the remedy for him, that way Ash would realize Gary cared about him.

 **-o-**

Delia knocked the door to her son's room, she couldn't open it like she had earlier, Ash had locked it.

"It's me!" Delia exclaimed.

"Mom? What's going on?" Ash opened the door.

Delia saw her son. He wasn't sick at all.

"I brought you this," Delia gave Ash the cup with the remedy and entered Ash's room.

Ash was confused. He closed the door and then he looked at the cup.

"This is Cilan's remedy, the one I made for Gary when he was sick," Ash said confused.

Delia sat on Ash's bed. She was going to play along to Ash's lie just for a few more moments.

"Gary told me you were feeling sick," Delia revealed.

"Oh, right!" Ash exclaimed.

"You know, Gary made the remedy himself, I just told him the ingredients." Delia smiled.

Ash blushed.

"What a nice gesture," Ash said with a smile, lying on his bed.

"Yesterday, you were crying because of him and now you're happy, that's weird, isn't it?" Delia asked in a sarcastic tone.

Ash could feel every single drop of his blood being pumped from his heart to the rest of his body. His smile and his blushed vanished.

"What are you implying?" Ash asked sitting on his bed and leaving the remedy on the night table.

"Gary was about to tell me what happened last night at the lab," Delia lied to make Ash more nervous.

Ash looked away from his mom, trying to evade his mother's glances.

"Mom, I already told you, weren't you satisfied with my explanation about Christine that you had to go ask Gary?" Ash asked trembling.

Delia started laughing and she stood up.

"I am Delia Ketchum! I am your mother! I am not stupid!" Delia exclaimed in a seriously angry tone.

"Mom!" Ash exclaimed in fear.

"I hope you enjoy the remedy, sweetie," Delia smiled as she walked to the door and left Ash's room.

Ash couldn't believe what had just happened. He took the cup with the remedy and smelled it, he thought he would find relaxation by it.

And he did, he remembered the night when he had taken care of Gary, when he had prepared the remedy for him.

Ash smiled as he remembered.

 **-o-**

Meanwhile, Gary was still in the kitchen, worrying about his life, when he saw Dawn coming down the stairs with her suitcase.

"Are you leaving?" Gary ran to her and asked surprised.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"But you said you would be leaving until Monday."

"I know, but they have another event in Unova and they really want me there," Dawn smiled.

"I'm… I'm sorry we didn't spend more time together," Gary apologized.

Dawn smiled. "That's fine, Gary, we'll have more time for ourselves later" she clarified.

"Sure," Gary smiled.

"And… I know you have some issues with Ash… you two really should work things out," she sighed.

"I don't know," Gary sighed.

"I know he's been out of his mind lately… and I know he and I aren't in the best terms right now… but he's still one of the greatest people I've met… one of my best friends."

"Yeah, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town," he laughed.

"That's him," Dawn smiled. "Well, it was nice to stay here," she said grabbing her suitcase and walking to the door.

"Wait!" Gary grabbed her suitcase. "Let me take you to the airport, it's the least I can do."

"That'd be nice, thanks." She smiled.

Gary opened the door and he and Dawn got on Gary's sports car and he drove her to Kanto's International Airport.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Gary was back to the mansion by noon. He saw Delia making lunch and he decided to join her, to ask her about Ash and how he was feeling. Gary wanted to know if the remedy he made for Ash had done him well, and maybe they could finally talk about what had happened the night before.

"Hi, Delia," Gary said as he entered the kitchen.

"Hi, Gary, where were you all morning?" She asked curious.

"Oh! I took Dawn to the airport," Gary explained.

"She's a very beautiful girl," Delia sighed.

"I know." Gary smiled.

"So, are you two dating or something?"

"What? No!" Gary blushed.

"Alright, I won't meddle." Delia giggled.

"Thanks, I guess," Gary said rolling his eyes. "Anyway, I wanted to ask… how is Ash feeling?"

Delia remembered how Ash had lied about being sick and she decided to fix his son's lie, or at least give it a conclusion for the time being.

"He's feeling so much better, the remedy you made for him did wonders," Delia revealed.

Gary blushed. He had actually helped Ash feel better, he was so proud of himself. "Is he in his room?"

"No, he just left about an hour ago with Brock and Misty, I think they won't be back until dinner," Delia sighed.

"Oh, well, I guess I'll just return to the lab and focus on my research," Gary said walking to the door that lead to the backyard.

"Gary," Delia said as she chopped some vegetables.

"Yeah?" Gary asked as he opened the door.

"I know Ash you didn't tell him about Christine last night while you two were at the lab… and I will find out the truth," she said happily chopping onions.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I don't know what you're talking about, miss Ketchum," Gary said without realizing, it was the first time in weeks he had called her miss Ketchum. Delia was smart enough to realize it, she knew Gary was scared of her.

"See you when lunch is ready," she avoided what Gary had said and returned to her cooking.

Gary left the kitchen and he went immediately to the lab. When he entered, and didn't see his grandpa around, he could finally listen to his heart, beating louder and louder. He felt threatened by Delia Ketchum… what would she do if she found out about him and her son having feelings for each other?

One thing he was sure about: it was too late to prevent the consequences.

 **-o-**

Gary avoided Delia for the rest of the day, he had lunch in the lab, with the excuse of having a video-call from Tracey.

"So, how is Cherrygrove city so far?" Gary asked with a curious smile.

Behind Gary, there was the lab background: some chairs, some tables, some books, some lab equipment, nothing Tracey was unfamiliar with.

Behing Tracey, at the other side of the screen, was a white wall and dozens of paintings. There was also a window and Gary could see the sunset and some pink trees behind. Tracey had some paint in his cheeks.

"Amazing, wonderful, marvelous," Tracey said with a big smile.

"Wow! The sunset is so beautiful there," Gary sighed admiring it through the window.

Tracey turned to see it just for a second, he knew it by memory now, after spending a month there already.

"I actually painted it a week ago, let me find the painting," Tracey said standing up and looking through the paintings in the back.

"You sure have painted a lot of things," Gary said admiring Tracey's work from the distance.

"There hasn't been a single day I haven't had inspiration, Gary, I love this town!" Tracey exclaimed with the painting in his hands.

It was a small painting about four feet long and two feet tall. Tracey focused the camera on his painting so Gary could appreciate every single detail.

"Tracey, that's gorgeous! It's almost as real as the one in the window!" Gary loved the painting.

"Thanks, man!" Tracey blushed a little.

"I miss you," Gary sighed.

"Aww, I miss you too," Tracey sighed. "But don't worry, I'll be back next week," Tracey winked.

"A lot has happened here since you left," Gary sighed.

Tracey could see concern, worry and sadness in his best friend's face.

"Is everything alright?" Tracey asked leaving the painting behind and sitting in front of the camera.

Gary wanted to release everything, he knew he could trust Tracey with everything, he knew Tracey wouldn't mind him being gay and having feelings for Ash.

So, why couldn't he tell him?

"Honestly… not really, everything has collapsed here, at least for me."

Tracey thought for a moment. "I know you're scared to tell me whatever is happening, and I'm not going to force you to, but Gary, please be careful," Tracey advised.

"I will, thank you for understanding." Gary smiled with one or two tears in his eyes.

There was a knock coming from Tracey's door.

"I'm coming, just give me a minute!" Tracey yelled without moving.

"Are you expecting someone?" Gary asked surprised as he cleaned his tears.

"Sort of," Tracey laughed nervously.

"Alright, I'll leave you alone for now, it was good talking to you." Gary smiled to the screen.

"Gary," Tracey sighed.

"Yes?"

"If it makes you happy, it can't be that bad," Tracey sang.

Gary smiled even more. "Thanks man, I love you."

"Love you too, bro," Tracey said goodbye. "We'll talk later."

"Bye," Gary said goodbye and ended the call.

"If Ash makes me happy," Gary sighed.

 **-o-**

It was dinner time, Gary finally got out of the lab and thank heavens he had finally finished his latest article! He was still far from finishing his research but by finally finishing that article he could take a week or two off!

"Where's gramps?" Gary asked surprised when he didn't see his grandpa sitting by the table.

Ash was already there and Delia was serving dinner.

Gary sat next to Ash who was still nervous to be next to Gary.

"Oh, he won't be joining us for dinner tonight, he was last-minute-invited to an improvised dinner in Viridian City, I believe some other pokémon professors are there," Delia informed.

"He should have told me! I've been trying to contact professor Rowan for a week! Maybe he is there!"

"I'm… sorry, Gary, I had no idea about that," Delia said quite enjoying herself.

"Why do you need to contact professor Rowan for?" Ash asked curious, letting his nervousness step aside for the moment.

"Oh, I need him to peer-review my article," Gary answered.

Ash got confused and Gary laughed, realizing Ash didn't understand what peer-review meant.

"He will basically read my article and give me some notes or corrections," Gary explained.

"Oh!" Ash exclaimed blushing. "I'm sorry I don't understand such a complicated language like science," he apologized.

"That's okay, Ashy," Gary smiled. "I bet there are some pokémon terms you understand and I don't.

Now Ash felt better, more confident in himself, yeah, maybe he wasn't a scientist but hell, he was a pokémon trainer!

"It's so good to see you happy today, Ash," Delia smiled taking a seat in front of Ash and Gary, now that dinner was served.

"What do you mean, Delia?" Gary asked confused.

Ash knew where the conversation was going.

"He was crying, didn't you know?" Delia asked surprised.

Gary's eyes opened after realizing Ash had cried just after their kiss… was Ash… regretful about their kiss?

"I told you mom, it was nothing!" Ash exclaimed trying to change the subject.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Well, enjoy your meal," Delia smiled.

The rest of dinner was silent… no one said anything.

Gary kept wondering about Ash crying after they kissed.

Ash kept wondering what he was going to do about Gary, and about his mom trying to find out the truth.

And Delia kept wondering what secret her son and Gary weren't telling her.

 **-o-**

When they finished dinner, Ash offered to wash the dishes and store the remaining food in the fridge.

"Well, good night, everyone." Delia smiled taking the stairs to her room.

Now Ash and Gary were alone.

Ash was in the kitchen, washing the dishes while Gary was sitting on the sofa, in the living room, just doing that, in silence.

As Ash was washing the dishes, he was looking at Gary, who appeared not to move, like a statue.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

When he finished doing the dishes, he stored the food in the fridge and then he walked from the kitchen to the dining room and then to the living room, where Gary was still sitting on the sofa.

"Well… good night, Gary," Ash sighed.

Gary stood up.

Ash waited for Gary to say anything, but when he didn't, Ash decided to take the stairs.

"Why did you cry?" Gary asked concerned, looking away from Ash.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Ash walked towards Gary, to face him.

"What do you think?" Ash asked with watery eyes.

"Listen to me, Ash, please, don't avoid me," Gary sighed looking down. "We have to talk, you know that," Gary sighed looking at Ash.

"This is neither the time nor the place, I'm in a hurry," Ash said trying to walk to the stairs but Gary grabbed his wrist.

"Just look me in the eyes," Gary sighed.

"Yes?" Ash asked trying to seem angry or mad but inside, he was burning.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"You and I have nothing to talk about, Gary." Ash looked at Gary with rage. "I just ask you for one thing… what happened last night… cannot happen again."

"I don't regret it," Gary sighed looking into Ash. "I don't regret it and this is madness, my head hurts and my stomach feels something I've never felt before, my heart is burning… and I know that you're feeling the same, Ash," Gary sighed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"You should regret… because your actions are making my mother suspicious and your actions are turning her into someone I don't know," Ash said with anger and tears in his eyes.

"Our actions!" Gary exclaimed now angry.

"No! Your actions, you started it! Don't drag me into your problems! I have nothing to do with your issues!"

"That is a lie! I know that you feel exactly what I feel."

There was a silence filled with Gary and Ash looking at each other.

"Let go of me," Ash said looking at his wrist, still held by Gary's hand.

Gary was tired of the conversation.

"Ash, what are we doing?" Gary sighed.

Ash sighed too. "Well, I… I am going to bed but you just won't let me go

"Stop it! Enough!" Gary yelled with tears in his eyes. "Please, you know what I am talking about. for God's sake, Ash!"

"I… I…" Ash sighed nervously.

"I don't know what to do with this, with what I am feeling inside!" Gary exclaimed.

"What is that?" Ash kept making a fool of himself.

"You want to know?" Gary asked with a daring stare.

"Gary… whatever you are feeling… is just a simple illusion," Ash sighed. "It's a mistake, it doesn't exist." Ash said looking to the floor.

Gary's eyes opened in shock. Ash was really saying that?

"It doesn't exist," Gary repeated, and then he smiled. "Ash, it does exist, it's real, very real, look into my eyes and tell me, tell me you don't feel anything about me."

Ash kept looking to the floor. Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Look into my eyes!" Gary yelled.

"Gary, stop, let me go!"

"Ash, look into my eyes!"

Ash finally looked into Gary's eyes… crying.

"Hey, hey, hey," Gary hugged Ash and kissed his hair. "You don't have to cry, Ashy."

"I'm scared, Gary, I'm scared," Ash finally revealed as he held to Gary's t-shirt.

"I know you're scared about your mother finding out about us, I'm terrified about my grandpa finding out too… I know you're also scared about having feelings for a guy, just like I am… but you're not alone, we're in this together, Ash," Gary sighed as he hugged Ash stronger.

Ash closed his eyes, his head lying on Gary's chest. Gary's arms around him. Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary closed his eyes, his chest supporting Ash's head. Ash's arms around him. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

They let go of the hug. They looked at each other, sincerely at last… and they kissed for the second time. A longer lasting kiss, their bodies still shaking but not because of fear this time but because of the heat being exchanged, their skeletons vibrated, their hearts beat, their noses breathed, their lips touches, and their eyes closed.

When the kiss was over, they let go of the hug.

"We're in this together," Gary repeated.

Ash nodded and sighed.

Gary played with Ash's hair to bring a happier mood between them.

"Hey!" Ash blushed.

Gary smiled.

"Hey boys, I forgot to turn off the blender!" Delia exclaimed emerging from the second-floor hall and going down the stairs. Fortunately, Ash and Gary weren't kissing anymore.

"Good night, Gary," Ash said as he took the stairs. "Good night mom," he said when he and his mother were in front of each other in the stairs.

"Good night, sweetie." Delia smiled.

"Good night, Ash!" Gary waved as he saw Ash disappear and Delia go into the kitchen.

"Oh, Gary," Delia said from the kitchen.

"What's up?" Gary asked with his hands in his pockets.

Delia said nothing for a moment. "You should go to bed now, it's getting late."

"You're right, good night, miss Ketchum." Gary smiled.

"Good night, honey." She smiled as she saw Gary leave.

When she was finally alone, Delia sighed and closed her eyes. The blender was already turned off.

"Adeline," she sighed with her hand on her heart, looking up.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

It was Sunday morning. Gary woke up early (like usual) and the first thing he did after taking a shower and dressing up for the day was walk to Ash's room and knock on his door.

"Hey." Gary smiled when Ash opened the door.

"Hey." Ash smiled, blushing.

"Do you have any plans for today?" Gary asked curious.

"Oh! Yeah, I'm going out with Brock and Misty, we still don't know where, they're coming here for breakfast and then we'll figure out where to go," Ash informed.

"Can't you… cancel on them?" Gary asked with his hands on his pockets and looking to the floor.

Ash blushed more. "I… I…" he said trembling.

"Ash! Misty and Brock are already here!" Delia exclaimed as she emerged from the stairs, saving Ash from the bell.

"Oh! I'm there!" Ash exclaimed running to the stairs, leaving Gary's question unanswered.

Delia walked to Gary as Ash walked down the stairs.

"Delia, if you're going to keep insisting on…"

"I won't," Delia said before Gary could finish.

Gary was surprised. "You won't? What… what made you change your mind?" he asked surprised.

Delia smiled but she wasn't going to tell why. "It seems Ash and you are good friends now… and if he was crying that night… I'm sure it wasn't because of you… because you would never hurt him, right?"

"I would never, I swear, Delia," Gary answered a bit nervous.

"Good." Delia smiled. "Will you join us for breakfast?"

"Sure!" Gary exclaimed and he followed Delia to the kitchen.

What had made Delia change her mind? Gary was clueless… but as long as she would not try to find out the truth anymore… he felt safe.

 **-o-**

As Gary went down the stairs, he saw Ash, Misty and Brock in the living room.

"Hi, everyone," Gary greeted them.

"Hey." Ash smiled punching Gary's shoulder softly and both of them laughed.

Brock and Misty had seen Ash cry that night too, and they thought Gary had something to do with it, but when they saw Ash act very friendly with Gary, those thoughts vanished in an instant.

"Hi." Misty smiled.

"How are you, Gary?" Brock asked.

"I'm fine, thanks Brock… but I'm really bored, I finished my article yesterday and now I'm taking a week off," Gary revealed.

"You are?" Ash asked surprised but deep inside he was wondering if Gary taking a week off had something to do with him… them.

"Hey, why don't you hang with us?" Brock proposed.

"Are you serious? Me? Hanging out with you three?" Gary laughed.

"C'mon, it'd be fun," Misty agreed with Brock.

"What do you think, Ash?" Gary asked Ash because his opinion was the only one that mattered to him.

"I… I…" Ash was having trouble finding words to express himself again. "Cool!"

"Then it's settled, you are hanging out with us!" Brock exclaimed with a smile.

"Where are we hanging out exactly?" Gary asked curious, remembering Ash had told him they still didn't know where.

"We don't know yet, we were hoping miss Ketchum's breakfast would give us any ideas." Misty giggled.

Gary thought for a moment.

"How about the sea between Pallet Town and Cinnabar Island?" He asked.

"The sea?" Brock asked confused.

"There's not a beach there," Ash said confused too.

"You mean like on a boat or a yacht?" Misty asked, she was the water-type pokémon gym leader, so she was the closest to understanding what Gary meant.

"Exactly, we have a yacht in the dock south of Pallet Town, we could use it to traverse the sea between Pallet and Cinnabar, you could take the sun as well," Gary winked to Misty.

"I love the idea!" Misty jumped in excitement.

"I had no idea you had a yacht!" Ash exclaimed astounded.

"But we didn't bring our bathing suits," Brock said worried.

"I could lend you and Ash some of mine," Gary told Brock. "And for Misty…"

"That's okay, I always have a bathing suit with me!" Misty exclaimed taking one out of her bag.

"Wow! You're so prepared!" Ash exclaimed with a laugh.

"You know I'd swim anywhere if I had the chance, that's why I always have a bathing suit with me," she smiled very proudly.

"I have some sunscreen and some tanning oil in my bedroom," Gary informed.

"And I will make you some sandwiches for you to eat when you're hungry," Delia said after overhearing the whole conversation.

"I guess we're settled!" Gary exclaimed excited.

"Great!" Ash was excited too.

"Alright, but you won't be leaving until you eat your breakfast." Delia smiled.

 **-o-**

One and a half hour later, Ash, Misty, Brock, and Gary were at the south Pallet docks.

"Have these docks always been here?" Ash asked astonished.

"Of course! Don't tell me you had no idea about them." Gary laughed.

"Can you blame him? He's always traveling around the world," Brock joked, hitting Ash softly on his back.

"You know how clueless Ash can be sometimes." Misty rolled her eyes.

Ash blushed, he was embarrassed of not knowing that place which was just ten minutes to the south of Pallet Town, the place where he lived.

The four of them walked along a wooden bridge until they arrived to the Oak's old yacht.

"Adeline," Misty said reading the name of the yacht, which was in the left side of the yacht.

"My mom," Gary said. "This was my father's and well, he named it after her," he said with a smile.

Gary tried his best not to get emotional. Misty, Brock and Ash realized they had to change the subject quickly before Gary started to cry.

"So, have you ever been on a yacht before, Ash?" Misty asked.

"Of course, I have, we all have!" Ash laughed.

"Oh yeah! I remember we used to travel on them a lot back when we traveled to the Orange Islands," Misty blushed.

"I haven't," Brock answered.

"What? You haven't? I don't believe you!" Misty exclaimed.

Brock laughed. "Oh well, I have ridden one or two of these beauties," he revealed proudly.

"You know how to ride one?" Gary asked surprised and the thought of his parents vanished from his memory, at least for the moment.

"Yeah, care if I am the captain for today?"

"Make yourself comfortable, captain Brock," Gary smiled.

"Thanks, sailor Gary," Brock laughed and everyone followed.

They got into the yacht. Gary was carrying the cooler with ice, sodas, water bottles and juices as well as some bags of chips, some boxes of cookies and the sandwiches Delia had made for them. Misty was carrying her small red bag while Brock had a bag with the sunscreen, the tanning oil and the bathing suits Gary had lend him and Ash.

 **-o-**

All settled, the four of them took the stairs to the flying bridge (second floor of the yacht, where the steering wheel was located). There was even a white captain hat, that had belonged to Gary's father, in a table near the steering wheel.

"I can't believe this is still here," Gary said amused, grabbing the hat with his hands. It was dusty and evidently old but it was well preserved, probably thanks to the small ceiling above.

"A. Oak," Misty read the inscription in the hat as Gary held it in the air.

"Was your mother the captain of this boat?" Ash asked confused.

"Not really," Gary smiled. "This A is from Alexander, my father," Gary revealed.

"Oh right! I didn't remember both of their names started with A," Ash said embarrassed.

"When was the last time you were here, Gary?" Brock asked curious.

"I was five," Gary sighed.

"What? So, you have never been here during the last twelve years?" Ash asked stunned.

Gary smiled and decided to stop thinking about his parents for good. "Why don't you use it, Brock? My father would be honored to sail once again, even if he is standing on your head," Gary smiled.

"The honor would be mine," Brock smiled taking the hat and wearing it.

"Let's go!" Gary said excited.

And at that moment, Brock took the steering wheel and started riding the yacht over the seas to the south.

 **-o-**

Ash, Misty, Brock, and Gary enjoyed the view as they traveled over the seas south of Pallet Town. They watched some water-type pokémon as the yacht moved over the water, they even ran into a horde of lapras and they saw several seaking and goldeen jumping over the water.

"Why don't we stop here, Brock?" Gary asked from the first floor. He was with Misty and Ash, near the railing where they had been for the last half hour.

The waters were quiet and the wind was blowing slowly. The sun was warm and there were a couple of clouds in the sky.

"Alright," Brock smiled and stopped the yacht right there.

"I guess it's time to wear our bathing suits," Misty said walking to her bag. "Where's the bathroom?" she asked Gary.

"Go inside, the door to the far right," Gary informed.

"Thanks!" she smiled as she left.

Brock went down the stairs to join Ash and Gary. He was already shirtless when he grabbed the bag with the swimwear shorts Gary had lent him and Ash.

"Here you go, buddy," Brock gave the shorts to Ash as he grabbed his.

Brock walked to the inside, just to take his jeans off and put on his shorts.

Gary was already wearing his shorts, so he just took off his t-shirt.

It was only Ash and Gary outside. Ash couldn't stop from looking to Gary's bare chest… it was just like the bare chest he had seen in that dream… that dream where Gary was punching a boxing bag. Gary realized Ash was staring at him and he laughed.

"They're perfect, thanks Gary!" Brock exclaimed getting out and Ash snapped out of looking to Gary's chest. He was blushed and he blushed even more when he turned to see Gary and Gary was smiling.

"It's nothing," Gary smiled.

"Why don't you go get changed, Ash?" Brock asked as he stretched himself.

"Yeah!" Ash exclaimed running inside.

"Care for a swimming race?" Gary asked Brock with a laugh as he saw Ash run inside.

"Count me in! Let's go!" Brock exclaimed and he and Gary jumped to the water.

 **-o-**

Moments later, Misty emerged from the inside wearing her red bathing suit and she joined Ash by the railing.

"Are those Gary and Brock?" she asked astonished.

"Yeah, the losers are on a race or something," Ash laughed.

"The water looks so good, why don't we join them?" she asked curious.

"Yeah, why not?" Ash laughed and he jumped onto the water followed by Misty.

Misty and Ash were swimming near the yacht in a 10 yards' ratio. A few minutes later, Brock and Gary joined them.

"And I'm the winner!" Gary exclaimed proudly, arriving three seconds before Brock.

"That was a good race, I want the rematch later," Brock said.

"Sure," Gary smiled.

"The water's so good here!" Misty exclaimed.

"I know, it's not that salty as in regular seas," Brock commented.

"And it's not that cold either," Misty added.

The four of them kept having a great time, swimming around the yacht and sometimes interacting with some friendly pokémon that passed by. Gary and Ash exchanged a couple of looks during that time and Ash kept blushing. Gary could finally get rid of all the stress he had accumulated from his work and all the long-gone drama with Ash and Ash was happy to see Gary having such a great time with Misty and Brock, it meant a lot to him that Gary got along pretty well with them two.

 **-o-**

An hour later, they were really tired. Misty was sleeping, laying on her stomach so her back could get a good tan. Brock was sleeping next to her but with his back down. The two of them were laying over a towel and resting in the first floor of the yacht in the deck.

Ash was in the flying bridge, sitting on a chair near the table next to the steering wheel. Gary took the stairs to the flying bridge, he was carrying a bottle of water.

"What about you, won't you take the sun with Misty and Brock?" Gary asked curious.

"No, I'm not in the mood," Ash sighed. "Besides, the sun is pretty intense."

"Well, aren't you going to put on some sunscreen?"

"You know we should have done that before we did all that swimming," Ash laughed.

"Still," Gary laughed. "We're going to be here a little longer, you don't want to get burned."

"Alright," Ash sighed, standing up and walking to Gary before taking the stairs. "It's a shame I have no one who can help me put it on," he whispered to Gary's ear.

Gary smiled as he saw Ash's back going down the stairs to the first floor.

"Oh, man!" Gary drinking more water.

Ash returned with the sunscreen on his hand. Gary was in front of the steering wheel, looking to Misty and Brock laying on the deck, both of them sleeping and enjoying the sun.

"So… will you help me?" Ash asked giving Gary the sunscreen.

"You sure about this?" Gary asked with a smile.

"Yeah, why not?" Ash smiled and he placed himself between Gary and the steering wheel, his back in front of Gary.

"Okay," Gary put some sunscreen on the palm of his hand and started applying it to Ash's back.

Ash looked to the horizon, Cinnabar Island could be seen from there. He saw some flying-type pokémon in the distance too. Gary's hands felt so good on his back, with the moisture of the sunscreen it created a very satisfying sensation. Ash closed his eyes, surrendering to the feeling… it felt good… really good.

When his back was done, Ash raised his left arm in a shape. Gary swallowed his saliva and put on more sunscreen on his palm. He was enjoying it too… applying sunscreen to Ash. He could listen to his own heartbeat… and something below him was getting on fire. And when Ash raised his left arm, Gary started to sweat, the heat between them had already surpassed the heat of the sun Misty and Brock were taking.

Gary applied the sunscreen to Ash's left arm with both of his hands and then he did the same with Ash's right arm. Ash was smiling, enjoying himself, not even caring about Misty and Brock waking up and seeing him and Gary in such touching.

And then Ash turned his back to the steering wheel so his chest was in front of Gary.

Gary swallowed more saliva, he felt he was about to burst, did Ash really want him to put sunscreen on his chest?

"C'mon," Ash smiled and then he closed his eyes.

Gary admired Ash's bare chest for a moment, it had a very beautiful natural color, Ash didn't have the bodybuilder type of chest but it was nice to look at, Gary's lips were dry and he wet them with his tongue, implying something else.

Gary put sunscreen on his palm again and started applying it on Ash's chest, touching Ash's chest in concentric circles, feeling Ash, touching Ash… Gary was about to explode both in his head and down under.

Ash opened his eyes and saw Gary tensed, his hands touching his bare chest.

They looked at each other.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

They kept looking at each other for a few more seconds, silence between them, only hearing the sound of waves.

And they couldn't fight the heat anymore, Ash jumped into Gary's arms and they started kissing with incredible passion. Gary walked along the flying bridge, in circles, carrying Ash as they kept kissing until he dropped him gently to the floor near the steering wheel. Now they were out of sight.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Ash's back was lying on the floor. Gary's chest was above Ash. They kept looking at each other. They were already shirtless. Ash looked to Gary's shorts and his excitement was evident, now Ash swallowed some saliva, he was nervous… but why exactly? What was going to happen that made him so nervous? Gary was about to collapse as well, the heat between him and Ash was something wild he had never experienced before… and now they were about to do something… something that would make both of them explode in unimaginable ways.

Gary put his hands on Ash's shorts and he looked to Ash for approval. Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. Ash nodded.

And just as Gary was about to take Ash's shorts off…

"Gary? Ash?" Misty asked from the deck.

Gary immediately stood up and he saw both of Misty and Brock up.

"Hi! What's up?" Gary asked from the steering wheel, putting his foot over Ash's chest telling him not to stand up.

"Where's Ash?" she asked confused.

"He went to the bathroom," Gary smiled nervously kicking Ash.

"Ow!" Ash exclaimed in a low voice but he understood Gary, so he got down the stairs and got inside and then to the bathroom without Misty and Brock noticing.

"Oh, well, we're hungry, aren't you?" Brock asked.

"Hell yeah!" Gary exclaimed suffering inside.

"Good! We'll see you inside." Misty smiled as she and Brock walked to the back side of the boat and then got inside.

"Oh, man!" Gary sighed with his hand on his heart.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

After having lunch together, Misty returned to the deck to keep taking some sun but now she was lying on her back so her tan would be uniform along her body. Meanwhile, Brock decided to read some of the old magazines Gary's father had kept in there; he grabbed three of them and went to the deck too, to a place covered by the ceiling of the flying bridge.

Gary went to the flying bridge too and he couldn't stop thinking about what had happened between him and Ash before lunch, he couldn't help but wonder how far they could have gone… he was about to take Ash's shorts for Arceus's sake! What was he going to do next? Gary was terrified by the taught, after all, he had no idea about how boys made… you know, with other boys and he was even more terrified to look that up on the web.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

But he couldn't get away from the thought, he had seen Ash's eyes, they were determined… did Ash know how to… no way! That was impossible.

"I'm going to ride the yacht just a little bit," Gary informed Misty and Brock.

"Okay," Misty said without moving.

"Just be gentle," Brock said still focusing on his magazine.

Where was Ash anyway? At least Gary thanked Arceus for the time alone, was Ash going to try to continue things where they had left them before lunch? Gary couldn't deny he was attracted to that idea, after all, he had felt something under his pants during that foreplay.

Gary started the yacht and he drove it slowly, trying not to bother Misty who was still laying on the deck. After a couple of minutes enjoying the view, the sound of waves and the salty wind striking gently against his face, his peace disappeared with the arrival of the one and only person who could do that right at that moment.

Gary felt him arriving, he left the steering wheel, stopping the yacht, and he turned around to see Ash just behind him. They didn't exchange words, Ash was just smiling and Gary, Gary was beginning to tremble.

Ash stood next to the steering wheel, next to Gary.

"You picked a very beautiful place, Gary," Ash sighed admiring the view.

"Yeah, it's very beautiful," Gary sighed smiling and admiring Ash, who kept looking to Cinnabar Island in the distance. "Crystalline water, no current, a great variety of water-type pokémon," Gary now focused his eyes to the water as he saw a small horde of staryu.

And now Ash was looking at Gary.

"It's a shame," Ash leaned closer to Gary and whispered on his ear.

"A shame? What… what is a shame?" Gary turned to face Ash, confused.

"That we have company," Ash sighed.

Gary felt tensed, he felt his blood running through his veins, he knew exactly what Ash meant by that. Ash started to smile, realizing Gary was nervous.

"Ash, please, stop it," Gary sighed.

Ash giggled. "What? I'm not doing anything, Gary."

"Yes… you are… you are going to give me a heart attack if you keep provoking me," Gary said closing his eyes for a moment.

Ash kept smiling. "I think… I think that you are just misunderstanding things," Ash replied. "I… am not provoking you, not right now," he added as he walked to the stairs to go down.

Gary laughed and he returned to the steering wheel but seconds after Ash was walking along the deck. Misty was still lying there, her face up but her eyes closed, maybe she was sleeping already, and Brock was too focused on the magazines he didn't notice Ash.

So, Ash walked to the very end of the deck and then he turned to see Gary by the steering wheel.

"What are you doing, Ketchum?" Gary asked in a low tone Ash couldn't hear.

Ash smiled and started to slowly touch his arms and then his chest. Gary couldn't believe what his eyes were seeing. The Ash slowly lied on the deck, on the left side of his body so Gary could appreciate his chest, his arms, his body… and he just looked at Gary while touching his hair slowly.

Gary was smiling terribly and thanked Arceus the flying bridge covered everything from his waist up.

Then Ash stood up and walked back to the flying bridge and he stood again next to Gary, next to the steering wheel.

"Now that… was me provoking you," Ash said with a smile.

"You really want to kill me," Gary laughed.

"I… I haven't been able to get rid of the thought… of our first kiss," Ash revealed. "Do you… do you remember it?"

Gary rolled his eyes and smiled. "I wish I could forget it," he said with his hand on his heart.

Ash smiled. "I love the sea," he sighed.

They didn't say anything after that for a couple of seconds until Ash spoke again.

"It's a shame… we can't do it right now… it's too risky," Ash sighed, looking to a horde of wingull and pelipper flying in the distance.

Gary looked at Ash, who was smiling and looking to those pokémon.

And he couldn't resist it anymore… Gary slowly placed his hands around Ash's back… and he grabbed him to kiss him passionately, right there, in front of those flying-type pokémon, just above Brock, and just in front of Misty.

"Gary? You're still there?" Brock asked from below, thanked Arceus the ceiling stopped him from watching Gary and Ash kissing.

Gary felt he was going to have a heart attack, and so did Ash, they separated and Ash walked back, took the stairs and got inside while Gary focused on the steering wheel.

"Yeah, I'm here," Gary said breezily.

"What's going on?" Misty asked opening her eyes.

"Nothing, I just thought it was weird how the yacht stopped after Gary said he was going to drive it," Brock clarified.

"I just thought this was such a beautiful spot and I didn't want to disturb you guys," Gary smiled nervously.

"Alright," Misty closed her eyes again and returned to taking the sun.

Gary could feel his heartbeat stronger and stronger, it was the second time that day he and Ash were about to get caught. He was still terrified by the thought of how far things could go between them, he wasn't sure if things could work out, he wasn't sure he could trust himself… but that kiss with Ash before lunch… putting sunscreen on him… touching his arms, his chest, his body… and that kiss moments ago… had been wonderful… Gary had felt more than butterfree inside his stomach.

 **-o-**

Nothing much happened after the second time they were about to get caught, Misty was finally done with her tan and Brock had read the magazines he had picked, after that, they joined Gary and Ash at the flying bridge and didn't leave there unless they had to go to the bathroom. So, Ash and Gary weren't alone the rest of the day.

It was before sunset when they decided to go back to the docks, and when they got back and Gary parked the yacht in its respective place, they watched the sunset together.

"It was a nice day," Misty sighed.

"Yeah, it sure was," Brock agreed.

"Did you have a good time, Ash?" Misty asked him.

"Sure," Ash smiled and he looked at Gary for a second.

"What about you, Gary? You don't regret spending the day with us?" She asked him now.

"Of course not," Gary sighed returning the second to Ash.

"Well, let's go back, I'm hungry for dinner," Ash smiled.

"I knew you'd say that," Gary laughed.

And the four of them returned to the Oak mansion to have dinner with Delia and professor Oak.

 **-o-**

Conversation during dinner at the Oak's was pretty much about how Gary, Ash, Misty and Brock had spent their day.

"Oh, good lord, I can't remember the last time I went sailing on that yacht," professor Oak said during the conversation.

"I do remember," Delia revealed.

"What? You were on that yacht before?" Ash asked surprised to his mother.

"Sure, Adeline and Alexander invited me and your father a couple of times, just the four of us." Delia smiled.

"They did?" Gary asked happily.

"Yeah, those were great times," Delia sighed.

"What did you guys use to do back then?" Gary asked curious.

"Just spend some time together, with no job pressure or… children," she answered with a small laugh.

"Ouch!" Ash exclaimed joking.

"Job pressure? Was working with me really that bad, Delia?" Samuel joked too.

"You know I loved working with you, Samuel," Delia said with a smile. "But you know, Adeline and Alexander had very pressuring jobs," she sighed.

"I do, and you know what?" Samuel now asked Gary.

"What?" Gary asked confused.

"They told me once, and I am quoting, our jobs may be a pain in the ass but when we get home and see our little Gary… we know working all day to see him smile to us at the end of it and give him the life he deserves… is worth it," Samuel held back his tears.

"That's so sweet," Gary said with water in his eyes. "Now, can we talk about something else? I love my parents but I don't want to cry," Gary joked.

"Oh! I almost forgot it, professor Rowan called today and he says he wants to discuss something very important with you," he informed his grandson.

"He did?" Gary asked standing up in surprise, he had wanted to speak to professor Rowan for weeks about his latest research. "What did he tell you?"

"Just that, he says it's confidential between you two, so he wants you to take the next plane to Sinnoh tomorrow, he said he would come but that flights don't suit him well, that old man," Samuel laughed.

"Oh my God!" Gary exclaimed breathless.

"How long would you be gone?" Ash asked worried, he was about to leave in six days for Alola, what if Gary had to be in Sinnoh for more than that? Would they not see each other until the next year?

"I… I don't know," Gary sighed, realizing how Ash was feeling because he felt the same.

"I'm sure it's just going to take a couple of days, Gary's sure going to be back before you leave, honey," Delia said in an optimistic tone.

"Yeah, I will, Ashy," Gary sighed, still not convinced about how much time he would be in Sinnoh.

"Yeah," Ash sighed with a weak smile.

 **-o-**

When dinner was over, Gary went straight to his room without saying goodbye to Misty and Brock. After that, Ash walked with Misty and Brock to the bus station, his pikachu joined him this time. When Misty and Brock said their goodbyes to Ash, he and Pikachu returned to the Oak mansion, walking through the empty streets in Pallet Town that night.

It was actually the first-time Ash had been alone with his pikachu since the day they arrived at Pallet Town back from their last adventure.

"I haven't seen you much during these weeks, buddy, how have you been doing with your friends?" Ash asked his best friend.

"Pikachu!" he exclaimed with enthusiasm, meaning he had had a great time with all those pokémon in the Oak's backyard.

"Yeah," Ash sighed. "You have no idea what has happened to me," Ash smiled as he faced down.

"Pika pi?"

"It's just that… I don't know what I'm feeling… that's been pretty much everything since I arrived here, first I wasn't sure how I felt towards Gary, it was pretty terrifying, to feel something like this for a guy… I won't lie, I was very scared to lose his friendship but fortunately… he feels the same way," Ash said with smiles on his face.

"Then it was the drama about our first kiss, about my mother being suspicious, and today… I discovered a new side of me… a wild side… I didn't recognize myself as I did all the things I did today, I'm not very proud," Ash laughed, embarrassed, remembering how he had provoked Gary with telling him to put sunscreen on his arms and chest, and then by seducing him as he walked to the deck of the yacht.

"And those kisses we had today." Ash smiled very happily. "I still can't believe we were about to… oh Arceus, I can't even say it." He was blushing.

"Pika pi?" Pikachu asked confused.

"Yeah," Ash sighed. "Were we… going to do it?" Ash asked terrified by the thought now that he was remembering, just like Gary, he had no idea how a guy and a guy… did those sort of things… he even had no idea how a guy and a girl did those sort of things, Ash was that pure. "You must be thinking I'm some kind of pathetic," Ash laughed.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu exclaimed angrily.

"Thanks, buddy." Ash smiled. "And now he's leaving, and I don't know how long he's going to be gone… what if he doesn't come back before I leave? What… what's going to happen between us? What are we?" Ash asked himself, admiring the beautiful moon and the starry sky.

"Pika pi, pika!"

"I wish it was that easy," Ash sighed. "But I have to leave to another region and I'll be gone for a year, and I know Gary has a lot of things to do with his research, and then there is his grandmother, who isn't dead by the way, though I think you didn't even knew she was dead to begin with," Ash said with a laugh.

"Pika."

"I like him, Pikachu… everything I've been feeling during these last days, since my first kiss with him… maybe I… maybe I…" he couldn't complete the sentence.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Maybe I love him," Ash finally revealed.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Gary was in his bedroom, thinking about the things that had happened that day, the things in the boat, the evident foreplay with Ash, the kisses with Ash and what could have happened between him and Ash if Misty and Brock hadn't been around… the thought still terrified him… why… why if neither of them liked… doing it? Would it ruin whatever relationship he and Ash had?

And that was the other question haunting him… what were Ash and him exactly? And more importantly, what would they be after Ash left for Alola the next week? And there it was the thing Gary had to travel to Sinnoh to see professor Rowan, he could have canceled the trip but this was a life or death situation, at least to his research, professor Rowan's opinion really mattered to Gary.

As Gary reflected about all those thoughts in his mind, he was sitting on the bed, wearing a white t-shirt and his pants, yes, he was wearing the clothes he used before going to sleep. But it was still early, it wasn't 9:00pm yet.

And suddenly, the door to his bedroom opened slowly, without any noise, but Gary could feel his presence. Gary turned to see Ash by the door, smiling as he closed the door and walked in.

Ash was also wearing a t-shirt and some pants, his clothes to go to bed too.

Ash slowly walked towards Gary, who stood up from his bed.

Ash was smiling but Gary… his face wasn't that happy.

"Ash," Gary sighed. "What are you doing here?"

"I just came to visit," Ash said with a smile.

"Right," Gary smiled awkwardly.

"Why did you leave dinner so suddenly? And why didn't you come with me and the guys to the bus station?" Ash asked worried.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I wanted to talk to you… about what happened today between us… and about you leaving… but it seems it didn't matter to you," Ash said crestfallen.

"It didn't matter to me?" Gary asked with a laugh.

"You're about to leave for Arceus knows how many days! You might not get back before I leave!" Ash exclaimed letting all his feelings release.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Why don't I go with you?" Ash asked holding Gary's hands with his.

"Go with me?" Gary asked trembling.

"Yeah, it's been a couple of years since I traveled to Sinnoh," Ash said looking to the rug on the floor.

"I will probably be all day at professor Rowan's lab, I…"

"I get it, I would only be a burden," Ash said feeling offended.

"I'm not saying that! You're being so dramatic about this!"

"Am I? Am I?" Ash asked now ofended.

"Okay, stop! I don't want us to fight," Gary sighed.

"You're right," Ash breathed in and breathed out.

"Besides… I… I don't want to be alone with you," Gary said starting to sweat.

Ash froze, he had no idea why Gary was saying that.

"I'd rather see you when someone's around… my grandpa, your mother, Misty or Brock," Gary sighed closing his eyes, he was scared of what he and Ash would do if they were alone… and even if it went well… it would only hurt them when Ash had to leave. "It's the only way… to control myself," Gary sighed opening his eyes.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Silence. No more words. No more smiles. Just tension. Just nervousness. Just desire. Just passion. Just heat. All between them.

Ash leaned closer to Gary until their faces were inches apart.

"And now… can you… control yourself?" Ash whispered to Gary's ear.

Gary closed his eyes and swallowed his saliva, feeling the blood rushing and his heart pumping fast.

He breathed in. He breathed out.

And then he opened his eyes to see Ash looking at him. That innocent and pure look in Ash's eyes was more than he could handle.

"Ash… don't do this to me, please," Gary sighed.

Ash smiled. "I'm not doing anything… I'm not even touching you." He said as his face got closer to Gary's, in fact, their noses almost touched but Ash was right, they weren't touching.

Gary wasn't going to be able to control himself… he knew it… that's why he walked away from Ash, to the door, and opened it. He knew what would happen if he didn't ask Ash to leave… it's not that he didn't want it to happen… but it was complicated.

"Go to your room, Ash, please," Gary sighed not looking to Ash.

Gary silently walked to the door… but he quickly grabbed Gary's hand and closed the door behind them.

"Gary," Ash sighed to Gary's ear.

And they were back to the position they were moments ago. Looking into each other's eyes, inches apart.

Gary couldn't fight the heat anymore… he put his hands around Ash's head and stole a deep kiss from him. Ash jumped and Gary grabbed him in his arms and they made their way through the bed among kisses.

Gary threw Ash gently onto the bed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary took off his t-shirt, slowly while Ash got a glimpse of Gary's chest, nothing he hadn't seen before… but this was different, it wasn't the chest he could see in public, in a beach or in that yacht, it was the chest he could only see in private, it was completely different.

Gary threw his t-shirt away.

"You sure about this?" Gary sighed.

Ash swallowed his saliva, he was just as scared as Gary.

And he didn't answer verbally, lying on the bed he took off his t-shirt slowly, while Gary looked at him from the top.

They looked at each other. That was it, wasn't it? It was the moment they were terrified for.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

And Gary got onto the bed, on top of Ash. He started kissing Ash's neck gently while Ash closed his eyes and started moaning in pleasure, grabbing Gary's hair.

"Gary? Are you there?" Delia knocked the door.

"Fuck!" Gary shouted in a low voice, immediatly getting out of the bed and Ash quickly walked to the bathroom.

Delia opened the door before Gary could answer it, but fortunately Ash wasn't in the room anymore.

"Oh! I'm sorry," Delia said ashamed seeing Gary shirtless.

"That's fine, Delia, don't worry," Gary tried to act cool about it.

"I just wanted to tell you that… I know you said you didn't want to see your grandmother tomorrow," Delia sighed and before she continued, Gary interrupted.

"I'm leaving for Sinnoh tomorrow, so, even if I did want to see her, I can't."

"I know but…" she said and when she looked to the floor her face got confused.

"What?" Gary asked trembling.

"You should put your dirty clothes in the laundry basket, Gary." She smiled pointing at the two t-shirts… Delia thought both were Gary's… but one was her son's.

"I was about to, I swear!" Gary exaggerated as a joke.

"Anyway," she laughed. "Would you consider at least letting her take you to the airport?"

"What? There's no way she's coming here to take me to the airport," Gary laughed.

"I can convince her to pick you up somewhere nearby," Delia sighed.

Gary thought for a moment, and he finally gave in.

"Alright, tell her to wait for me in the park three blocks down."

"I'll call her immediately," Delia said with a smile. "Oh, and I promise not to enter your room without you opening the door first."

"I would appreciate that, thank you." Gary smiled.

Delia got out of the room and Gary walked to the door to lock it.

"That was close," Gary laughed as Ash emerged from the bathroom.

But Ash wasn't laughing, his face was serious.

"What happened?" Gary asked Ash.

"Can you promise me to come back before I leave?"

Gary sighed. "Why don't we…" he started asking by gently touching Ash's chest but Ash grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"I mean it," Ash sighed.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"We need to talk about us before I leave, Gary," Ash sighed.

"Alright, I promise I'll be gone for just two days," Gary confirmed.

"You mean it?"

"Yes… but with one condition, let's not talk about that until the day before you leave, let's not worry about it now."

"I understand," Ash said with a smile.

"So? Ashy-boy, can we continue?" Gary smiled.

"We'll continue when you come back." Ash smiled grabbing his t-shirt from the floor.

"Oh! I know what you're doing." Gary laughed.

"Sorry, baby, I want to make sure you will be back." Ash winked, walking to the door.

"Alright," Gary sighed with a smile.

"So, will I see you tomorrow at breakfast?"

"I don't think so, I will leave very early."

"Well, Ash said putting on his t-shirt and walking to Gary, have a nice trip," he said giving Gary a goodbye kiss, tender, sweet.

Ash smiled and walked to the door but Gary stopped him and held him back in his arms, stealing another kiss from him, full of passion.

"I have to make sure this kiss lasts until I come back," Gary laughed.

"Oh, well," Ash sighed with a smile and kissed Gary again, with even more fire.

"That'll do it," Gary said.

"See you," Ash smiled and he left the room.

"Oh, man," Gary sighed after Ash left.

 **-o-**

It was finally the next day and Gary woke up very early. He took a shower and packed a small suitcase with clothes just for two days, he still wasn't sure if he was going to stay just those two days but he was determined to do whatever he was going to do in the least time possible.

When he went down the stairs, Delia was waiting for him. It was still too early and the sun hadn't risen yet, both Ash and professor Oak were still sleeping.

"You ready?" Delia asked Gary, she was going to walk him to the park where Christine Oak would pick Gary up and take him to the airport.

"Yeah," Gary sighed walking with his suitcase to the door.

"Gary, wait!" Ash exclaimed emerging from the second floor and going down the stairs in a haste.

"Ashy?" Gary asked with a smile.

"I just wanted to wish you a bon voyage." Ash smiled giving Gary a hug.

"Thanks, Ashy," Gary said smiling.

"That was sweet, honey." Delia smiled to her son.

"Well, we should get going," Gary said.

"Are you taking him to the airport?" Ash asked playing with his mother a little, she had no idea he had overheard the conversation she had had with Gary the night before, yeah, while he was hiding in Gary's bathroom.

"Yes, I will," Delia answered.

"Can I go with you?" Ash asked and Gary realized Ash was messing around with his mother.

Gary rolled his eyes and Ash started laughing inside.

"I… I…" Delia didn't know how to get rid of her son in this situation.

"That's fine, mom, besides, I'm still very sleepy," Ash yawned.

"Then, go get some sleep, I'll be back before breakfast." Delia thanked heavens for her son saying that.

"I guess I'll see you in two days, Gary," Ash winked, remembering Gary about what would happen in two days.

"I will, Ashy," Gary said trying to control himself.

"Be seeing you!" Ash exclaimed and he quickly took the stairs back to his room.

"Well, let's get going," Gary said walking to the door.

 **-o-**

"That's her car, I'll leave you here," Delia said pointing at Christine Oak's car in the other side of the park.

"What if Ash sees you come back so soon?" Gary asked Delia, pretending too that Ash didn't know about the conversation Delia and he had the night before.

"I'll handle it, don't worry about me," Delia said giving Gary a hug. "Good luck in Sinnoh," she added with a smile.

"Thank you," Gary said and he saw Delia walk back to the mansion.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

And he walked towards his grandmother's car.

"Hello," Christine said getting out of the car, she was enthusiastic to see her grandson.

"Hi, Christine," Gary said with a forced smile.

"What? Aren't you going to call me grandma?" she asked worried.

"I don't know, are you finally going to tell me why you faked your death?" Gary asked in a challenging tone.

Christine remained silent with worry in her eyes.

"That's what I thought," Gary said with a smile, walking to the car and opening the door to the passenger seat and leaving his suitcase in the seats behind.

"Gary," Christine sighed.

"That's fine, you're not ready, I understand," Gary said with a smile and he got into the car.

Christine entered the car and took the driver's seat. She didn't start the car right away.

"Hey, it's fine, I'm not going to force you to…"

"Stop it!" Christine shouted.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

Gary didn't say anything.

"I just want to spend some time with my grandson, even if it's just forty minutes from here to Viridian city's airport, I want to spend time with my grandson whom I love. Is that so bad?" Christine asked looking to Gary.

"I guess not," Gary sighed.

"Thank you," Christine sighed with a smile.

"I am gay, grandma," Gary sighed.


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

 _Monday, 2:10pm_

I just got here… and I miss you already, Ashy-boy. It's pretty cold here, I didn't even bring a sweater, fortunately my lab coat will keep me warm. I hope you're not bored, I guess you're spending the afternoon with Misty and Brock, that's good.

 _Monday 4:15pm_

Professor Rowan hasn't aged a bit, he still looks the same as the last time I saw him two years ago, but well, my grandpa hasn't aged since I have memory, I guess old people don't age notoriously like we young people do. I still remember when we were kids, I can't believe that the boy I used to play with in my grandpa's backyard, that silly boy got to become so handsome.

 _Monday 7:10pm_

I had an intense discussion with professor Rowan and he is sure I can leave this Wednesday, we still have a lot to talk about but we will use all of tomorrow and Wednesday's morning, so I will be back on Wednesday's night, I can't wait to see you. I'm on my way to eat dinner, what should I eat? I bet you're going to have something very delicious for dinner, now I miss your mom too.

 _Monday 11:04pm_

I ended up having Chinese food for dinner, nothing special but I bought a fortune cookie and it said I would get lucky during this week, I couldn't stop from blushing, knowing what will happen once I get back. Good night, Ashy-boy, I wish I could hug you right now and give you a goodnight kiss.

PS: feel free to have a wet dream about me, I'll feel free to have one about you!

 _Tuesday 6:02am_

Good morning! Sorry if I woke you up with this message, it's still cold in here, I'll take a hot bath, wish you could join me haha. I hope you have a good day today, are you going somewhere with Misty and Brock today? Wish me luck for today, I have a lot of things to discuss with professor Rowan.

 _Tuesday 12:40pm_

I'm having lunch with professor Rowan and some of the people from his lab, we're at this pizza place, I like it. We still have a lot to do but I am certain we will finish before noon tomorrow. Oh, by the way, professor Rowan just saw me texting to you right now and I told him it was you and he remembered you, he sorta rolled his eyes when I said your name but he says hi and he hopes you're doing good! I miss you.

 _Tuesday 3:33pm_

Oh God, I'm so tired, I just got back to my hotel room to take a nap but I have to be back at the lab around 5:30pm, that will give me around 90 minutes of sleep. How's your day going? It's so weird being in a room that's not next to yours, can't wait to be back tomorrow.

 _Tuesday 10:45pm_

Sorry I couldn't text you until now but things got pretty intense at professor Rowan's lab after I got back from my nap, don't worry, no one got hurt and my research is pretty much finished, I will just talk some final details with professor Rowan tomorrow. Oh, and the intense thing that happened is that some pokémon escaped and everyone was looking for them around town, they recovered everyone safe, thanks Arceus! Good night, Ashy!

 _Wednesday 7:04am_

Last day in Sinnoh! I miss Pallet town, I miss grandpa's lab, I miss your mom's food, I miss them… but mostly, I miss you the most, Ashy-boy. Hope you have a good day today!

 _Wednesday 11:04am_

I'm officially done! I can't believe it! Professor Rowan was so nice to me during these days, now I'm going to grab something to it, then I will take a nap and I will go to the airport later, my flight leaves at 6:30pm.

 _Wednesday 4:44pm_

My suitcase is done, I even bought you, your mother, my grandpa, Tracey, Misty and Brock some souvenirs from here, I can't wait to give them to all of you, but mostly, I can't wait to see you tonight, Ashy-boy.

 _Wednesday 6:24pm_

Alright, my phone's about to die, I should have charged it at the hotel, but that's fine, I'm about to take the plane to Kanto's International Airport and I should be at the mansion around 11:00pm, will you wait for me? Please, I need to see you tonight, I can't control myself anymore… and somehow, I have the feeling this flight will be the longest flight in my whole life. If you were with me now, we would totally join the mile high club hahaha.

 **-o-**

It was midnight at the Oak mansion and Gary hadn't still arrived. Ash was waiting for him in the living room, with his mother and professor Oak.

"He should have arrived by now," Ash sighed worried, he was walking around the living room in circles.

"I'll call the airport," professor Oak said grabbing the phone.

Ash yawned, he was sleepy.

"You should go to bed, honey, I'm sure Gary's flight got delayed, you will see him tomorrow," Delia said to her son.

"No, I'm sure he'll arrive anytime soon, I promised I would be here when he got here," Ash sighed, closing his eyes and yawning.

"Thank you so much," professor Oak said to the person in the other side of the line and hung up the phone.

"So?" Delia asked Samuel.

"His flight got delayed, it didn't take off from Sinnoh's International Airport until 10:45pm," Samuel informed.

"That's 4 hours late," Ash said shocked.

"Yeah, they had some problems with the fuel, but the good thing is that Gary is fine," professor Oak said with optimism.

"So, Gary will be back around 4:00am," Delia said doing the math on her head.

"Yes, you should go to sleep, Ash, we all should go to sleep," Samuel said.

"Isn't it going to be dangerous for him to come that late from the airport?" Ash asked worried.

"He's going to take an airport cab, it's very safe," Delia smiled.

Ash yawned again, he had no strength left.

"Come on, let's go," Delia helped her son take the stairs.

"Good night, Delia, Ash," Samuel said from the living room as Delia and Ash walked up the stairs.

"Good night, professor," Ash said almost asleep.

"See you tomorrow, Samuel."

 **-o-**

Gary arrived at the mansion at exactly 3:51am, feeling exhausted and really bad about not being able to arrive earlier, he felt bad because he had promised Ash they would see each other that night.

"I'm sorry, Ashy boy," Gary sighed after closing the door to the mansion.

He didn't turn on the lights, he took the stairs and went straight to his bedroom.

 **-o-**

Gary didn't wake up until 11:00am that morning, he had gone to bed really late after he got home, he took a shower, brushed his teeth and immediately got out of his room and knocked on Ash's door.

Ash opened the door immediately and he saw Gary there. Gary smiled weakly, still sorry for being one day late.

Ash smiled to him and let the door opened, then he started walking slowly towards the window. Gary was still by the door and when he saw Ash stop near the window, he closed the door and started walking towards him.

"I'm sorry, I overslept," Ash apologized looking through the window.

"I tried coming back as fast as I could," Gary sighed standing behind Ash.

Ash trembled and closed his eyes when he listened to Gary's voice again, and then he smiled.

"Well," Ash took a careful step behind and laid his head on Gary's shoulder. "We wouldn't have been able to do anything with your grandfather and my mother here, and besides I bet you must have been really tired," Ash said with a smile, closing his eyes, and resting on Gary.

And then Ash turned slowly to see Gary.

"Yeah," Gary sighed closing his eyes as Ash put his arms around him, closing his eyes too.

Both with their eyes closed, Ash and Gary moved their lips towards the other's, their lips were attracted like a magnet.

"Did you get all my messages?" Gary asked with a smile, still closing his eyes.

Then Ash smiled and opened his eyes, their noses were touching.

"Yeah, I did, sorry I couldn't answer, my phone kind of died, I still got your messages but I couldn't reply to them, I meant to take it somewhere to get it fixed but Misty and Brock got plans for everyday so I had no free time," Ash sighed moving his nose around Gary's face and stopping once he was behind Gary.

"I was dying to see you, that's why I got so desperate that I had to write to you," Gary said closing his eyes as Ash started kissing his neck.

"I loved it… I love it when you write to me, I want you to write to me every hour of the day," Ash whispered to Gary's ear as Gary opened his eyes and breathed in and out.

Then Ash walked around Gary to be in front of him again. Gary started caressing Ash's face, with tenderness. Ash closed his eyes as Gary touched him.

"You know what?" Gary asked with a smile.

"What?" Ash asked kissing Gary's finger once it made its way to his lips.

"I couldn't sleep last night, I kept thinking you would show up anytime, in the middle of the night." Gary smiled.

Ash smiled as Gary kept caressing his lips.

"Well, maybe one of these days… your dream will come true," Ash smiled.

"Yes?" Gary asked feeling the heat run through his veins.

Ash moved his lips closer to Gary and before Gary could touch them with his to kiss them, Ash moved them back and started giggling.

"But not here," Ash laughed gently. "I'll wait for you downstairs," he added as he walked to the door.

"Yeah, I'll be down there in a minute," Gary smiled.

"You're sure, right? You're not going to keep me waiting like last night, are you?" Ash smiled, winked, and sent Gary a kissed as he left.

Gary was now alone. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He and Ash were about to… they were going to… Gary was still nervous and terrified… but he trusted Ash, he trusted the two of them, he got all brave and walked out of Ash's room, determined to have the best day of his life so far.

 **-o-**

Gary drove his sports car and stopped it in a small but very nice, elegant and fancy five starts motel in the outskirts of Viridian city.

"You sure about this?" Gary asked Ash again as they got out of the car.

"Yes," Ash smiled.

"Alright," Gary said walking to Ash and grabbing his hand.

"Wait," Ash said letting go of Ash's hand.

"What's going on?"

"We shouldn't arrive there together," Ash said nervous.

Gary thought for a moment. "I understand, what's your plan?"

"You go and rent a room, and when you're there you send me a text with the room number, then ten minutes later I go and rent another room but instead I go to your room," Ash proposed.

"Sounds good to me." Gary smiled as he took out his wallet.

"No, let me pay for my half." Ash put his hand on Gary's hand.

"Ashy, I don't mind paying for the two rooms even if we're just going to use one," Gary insisted.

"No, please, I insist."

Gary wasn't convinced but he knew he had to let Ash pay for his room if he wanted to make progress because he had the feeling it would be like that in their future, both of them splitting bills and stuff.

"Alright, I'll see you in ten minutes," Gary quickly gave Ash a kiss on the cheek and walked into the motel.

"Oh, man," Ash sighed, closing his eyes as he watched Gary get into the motel.

 **-o-**

Gary was already in the suite of the hotel, he wanted the place to be special for such an important event in his life. Gary was walking in circles around the sofa, breathing and trying to relax as he waited for Ash to come in. He had texted him the room number twenty minutes ago, so Ash was going to arrive anytime soon… if he hadn't backed out, had he?

Had Ash had second thoughts? Had Ash left without telling him?

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He put his hand on his chest and he felt his heart beating, and he decided to remain optimist.

"I'm nervous too, buddy," Gary said with a small laugh, trying to find relaxation in small jokes.

And then the door was knocked.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

He walked to the door and opened it.

It was Ash, smiling to him, and he smiled back.

Ash entered the room without waiting for Gary to tell him to come inside. Gary closed the door after Ash got in. Ash walked to the bar, just to lay his arms on it, not to drink anything. Then he turned around to see Gary, still smiling, in front of him.

"Hi," Ash said smiling.

"It took you so long," Gary said still smiling, Ash was already there with him, that's what really mattered.

Ash didn't answer, he kept playing the smile game with Gary.

And suddenly Gary's phone started ringing.

Gary's smile disappeared the moment he saw the name on the screen.

"It's Dawn," Gary sighed.

Ash's smile fade away too, he became worried.

"Answer," Ash said nervous.

"No," Gary said determined.

"I just don't want her to become suspicious," Ash said tense.

"There's no way she can be suspicious, Ashy, she's not even in Kanto right now," Gary said smiling.

"Gary, answer please, I'll… I'll go to the bathroom," Ash said trembling.

"Hey, hey, hey," Gary said grabbing Ash's arm. "It's gone," Gary said referring to the ringing. "I will call her later, okay?"

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

His eyes were worried but he focused them on Gary's and he found comfort.

"Okay," Ash smiled.

Gary slowly put his hand on Ash's hair and started caressing it.

Ash blushed. "I… I couldn't tell you back at the mansion, that you, that you looked so handsome."

Gary laughed a bit and then Ash laughed too.

"Seriously?" Gary asked blushing.

"Yeah." Ash kept smiling.

"Well, you look so handsome too," Gary said now caressing Ash's face.

"Oh, what a liar," Ash said laughing.

"I swear!"

"Me? Handsome? No, I'm not handsome." Ash kept blushing. "I just need to go to the bathroom, it won't take me more than two minutes," Ash said trying to walk to the bathroom.

But Gary grabbed his arm again.

"Hey," Gary sighed, he kept caressing Ash's hair and face. "I couldn't sleep last night… thinking about… what's going to happen in a few moments."

The smiles fade away, but that didn't mean sadness came in. Ash and Gary looked at each other for seconds, they closed their eyes, and they kissed.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

"What's taking you so long?" Gary asked impatiently, walking in circles outside the bathroom. Ash had been there for ten minutes already.

"I'm there, just a sec!"

Gary kept walking around until he saw Ash coming out of the bathroom wearing nothing but his boxers... and a nice package underneath them.

"It was worth the wait," Gary sighed as he looked at Ash from head to feet, focusing obviously on the only pair of clothing he was wearing.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out, and then he smiled.

"I just hope… nobody suspects about us," Ash sighed closing his eyes.

"Hey," Gary said touching Ash's hair. "Ashy, everything's going to be alright, trust me."

Gary put his right hand on Ash's lower back, just a little bit above Ash's boxers and with his left hand he kept touching Ash's hair and then his face.

Ash closed his eyes and let Gary begin. Then Gary put his left index finger on Ash's lips.

"You are so handsome, I mean it, don't laugh and say you're not, because you truly are," Gary sighed.

And then Gary gently bit Ash's lips, and he proceeded to kiss Ash's cheeks, and then his ear, and then his nose, and then his forehead, and then his lips.

"We have all day, just us two, alone," Gary sighed between all the kissing.

Ash moaned constantly as Gary kissed all parts of his face.

"We don't have to hide from anyone here," Gary said now touching Ash's back with both his hands.

"Oh, Gary," Ash sighed, he was still closing his eyes.

"What?" Gary asked lying his head on Ash's naked shoulder.

"I can't believe this… this is happening," Ash said opening his eyes. "You and I, alone, just us two," Ash sighed.

"Yes," Gary sighed closing his eyes and moving his lips closer to Ash.

"Gary," Ash sighed taking a step behind.

"Yes?" Gary asked opening his eyes.

"I'm… thirsty, can you give me some water?"

"Sure." Gary smiled and he rushed to the kitchen.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

He smiled, he sighed, and he blew some air.

Gary was back with a glass of water, he gave it to Ash, and his phone started ringing again.

"It's your mother," Gary said feeling tense.

"Don't answer," Ash said trembling and he spilled some water to the rug in the floor.

The phone kept ringing.

"Hang up, turn off your phone!" Ash shouted and the glass of water fell from his hands to the floor, shattering.

"Hey, hey," Gary hugged Ash and threw his cellphone to the sofa. "We're not doing anything wrong, Ash, we're not," Gary sighed closing his eyes.

"We're not, we're not, we're not," Ash kept repeating that trying to convince himself of that, then he sighed closing his eyes, resting his head on Gary's shoulder.

The phone kept ringing.

"I'll just see what she wants, maybe it's nothing related to you," Gary said.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Okay," Ash sighed.

Gary let go of the hug and grabbed his cellphone from the sofa while Ash walked in circles around the room.

 **-o-**

Gary was right, Delia had called for something related to the mansion, not to Ash, she must have thought Ash was spending the day with Misty and Brock, like always.

When he hung up, he turned off his cellphone. Gary smiled and walked towards Ash.

"Do you feel better now?"

"Yes," Ash sighed with a smile.

"Yes?"

"Yes."

"Come here," Gary said pulling Ash closer but not hugging him.

Ash closed his eyes and he felt both Gary's hands, each one on a different side of his head, then he felt them moving to different sides of his neck; Gary's hands kept moving until they reached each one a different shoulder of Ash's body, and from there they descended along a different arm.

Their hands touched for a second, Gary couldn't resist moving both his hands to Ash's chest. Ash moaned, Gary's hands were colder before but now the sensation was stronger because his chest was warmer than the other body parts Gary had touched until then. Gary's hands kept moving down on Ash's chest until they reached his boxers.

"You are the most handsome man I've ever met," Gary sighed as he caught a detailed look of Ash's body.

Ash hugged Gary and he held his arms tightly to Gary's t-shirt. And they started kissing again.

Gary led the way from there to the bedroom, they moved in harmony, between kisses. When they reached the bed, both of them fell on it and made their way to the top of it. Gary was over Ash, kissing him and then he started kissing every inch of Ash's body from his head to just above his boxers. Ash's moaning was an enchanted melody to Gary's ears as he kissed Ash's chest.

When Gary gently touched Ash's boxers for the first time, Ash moaned intensely and sat on the bed. "Gary," Ash said trembling.

"What's going on?"

"I can't… I can't do this," Ash said starting to cry.

"Hey," Gary hugged Ash. "Don't cry, Ashy," Gary sighed as he felt Ash shivering on his shoulder.

Ash now was facing Gary, he felt ashamed, embarrassed and fragile.

"Please, don't cry, I understand you," Gary said caressing Ash's hair and cleaning his tears.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Ash sobbed. "Really?"

"I swear, Ash," Gary sighed. "Come here," he said putting his head on his shoulder again. "It's alright, Ash, I'm not going to force you do something you don't want to do."

Ash closed his eyes, letting Gary's heartbeat calm him. Gary closed his eyes too as he stroked Ash's hair.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

 **-o-**

Moments later, Ash got out of the bedroom, completely dressed, and followed by Gary.

"You… you don't hate me for what just happened, right?" Ash asked scared.

"For God's sake, Ash, I could never hate you," Gary sighed.

"Well, now that I think about my last sentence, I should have said for what didn't happen," Ash said bringing a little humor to the conversation.

Gary smiled and he touched Ash's face once again.

"It's like we're doomed… like it's never going to happen… that'll be our punishment for falling for each other," Ash sighed closing his eyes.

"Don't say that! There's nothing wrong in this, there's nothing wrong with us," Gary said holding back his tears.

"Ash and Gary, do you hear that? Ash and Gary went to see a movie together… Ash and Gary kissed… Ash and Gary are a couple…" Ash said feeling rather pessimistic.

"Of course, I do hear that!"

"I'm going to leave in two days… and we will probably not see each other for an entire year… I guess it's better we leave it like this," Ash sighed closing his eyes.

"Are you ending this? Please don't," Gary was now crying.

"Don't cry, Gary, you don't cry… you…" Ash was now crying too.

Ash and Gary looked at each other.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

"We'll find a way to work things out, believe in me, Ashy boy," Gary said caressing Ash's hair.

Ash closed his eyes.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. And then he took a step behind.

"Don't do this," Gary begged.

"I'm sorry," Ash kept crying as he walked to the door.

"Ash!" Gary shouted in tears but Ash opened the door and left.

Two hearts shattered, a complete heart broken in two halves… would those halves become a whole again? Were they even a whole to being with?

Gary stayed at the hotel room for some more time until he decided to take his cellphone and make a call.

"Hey, sorry I couldn't answer before, what's going on?" He asked as the phone call started.

 **-o-**

Walking back to the mansion, Ash kept wondering if he had done the right thing. He got a terrible headache and he wanted to cry his heart out, sleep and never wake up again; he was destroyed.

When he got to the mansion, it was empty, his mother was probably checking the house as usual and professor Oak was probably in the lab. He had planned to spend the whole day with Gary so he told Misty and Brock not to come until tomorrow, the last day of his stay in Pallet Town before finally leaving to Alola the morning after.

That's when it struck him like lightning, he was going to leave to Alola in 2 days. How would things with Gary turn out after him leaving to Alola? Would they remain whatever it was they were at that time? He knew for sure it was going to be difficult with them two being in two different regions with different things to do.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

 **-o-**

There was a peculiar trio outside the Oak mansion at that time, a peculiar trio that had arrived to Pallet Town the same day Ash had arrived almost a month ago.

"I'm telling you, Jessie, we've been spying on him for almost a month and he's just living a normal life, we should have taken those vacations James suggested," Meowth sighed while Jessie and James used binoculars to inspect the Oak mansion.

"You don't understand, Meowth, do you know how many pokémon there are in the Oak mansion? We'll be promoted to executives of the Team Rocket if we could take them all to Giovanni!" Jessie exclaimed with lots of enthusiasm.

"But the mansion hasn't been completely lonely since we arrived, and according to my research, that fool is leaving in two days," Meowth commented.

"That's why I took care of matters, Ms. Ketchum and professor Oak are going to go to a party tonight, I myself got them their invitations," Jessie said with a smile.

"What about the fool and the nerd?" Meowth asked a bit annoyed.

"Didn't you see Ash arrive at the mansion? He was depressed, I don't know why but we could totally use that, I'm sure he will spend the rest of the day in his room," James explained.

"Alright, what about the nerd?" Meowth insisted.

At that moment, Meowth's question was answered without someone having to speak. Dawn arrived at the mansion, in a cab.

"I guess we have our answer, his girlfriend just got back, I'm sure they're going on a date tonight," Jessie said with a smile.

 **-o-**

Gary walked out of the hotel and he got into a car that was waiting for him at the entrance.

"Thank you for coming for me," Gary sighed as he fastened his seat belt and closed the car's door.

"For my favorite grandson, always." Christine smiled.

Gary smiled and then he sighed.

"Is everything alright, sweetheart?" Christine asked worried.

"It's just that…" Gary sighed again.

"I recognize that sigh," she said with a smile.

"Huh?"

"You're in love, dear, I used to sigh like that all the time when I first dated your grandfather." Christine's eyes sparkled.

"How was it? Dating grandpa," Gary said with curiosity.

"I thought we were talking about you being in love with Delia's son." Christine smiled.

"We'll do it, but I want to hear your story first," Gary insisted.

"Are you sure you want to listen to this old woman's stories?"

"Hey, don't call my grandmother an old woman."

Then Christine smiled and played a little with her grandson's hair.

"Alright, should we go get some ice cream?"

"That'd be nice, yes," Gary agreed.

And grandmother and grandson spent a nice afternoon together, talking about love.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Ash was in the Oak mansion's living room; the sun had already set down on the horizon.

Delia Ketchum and Samuel Oak emerged from the kitchen, both of them were wearing formal clothes. Delia was wearing a beautiful red dress which matched perfectly with her hair, and Samuel was wearing one of his oldest tuxedos that still suited him like a charm.

"Wow! You two guys look really good," Ash said with a smile as his mother and his mentor walked to the living room.

"Thank you, sweetie!" Delia blushed, feeling beautiful.

Now, Ash wasn't wearing his finest clothes (not that he had any formal clothes or that he really cared about his looks), he was just wearing some black pants and a white t-shirt, and he was barefoot as well.

"We have to leave now if we want to make it on time," Samuel said as he looked to his watch.

"Promise me to take care of her, professor," Ash said to professor Oak.

"Don't worry, she's on the best hands," Samuel smiled giving Delia a small hug.

"Well, you two have fun!" Ash exclaimed happy for his mother, he really wanted her to have fun and take a break from her busy life as a mother.

"Thank you, honey, there's food on the stove for you and Gary to eat for dinner, see you later!" Delia exclaimed as she and Samuel Oak left the mansion.

So that was it, he and Gary would have the mansion for themselves for the rest of the night… or at least that was what Ash thought… and expected.

 **-o-**

Not much after, just a couple of minutes, somebody rang the bell to the mansion. Ash was confused but he thought his mother and professor Oak had forgotten something. He paused the movie he was watching and he walked to open the door, only to get a big big surprise.

"Dawn!" Ash exclaimed paralyzed.

"Hey, Ash," Dawn smiled awkwardly.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Wha… what are you doing here?"

"I'm… I'm really sorry I left without saying goodbye," Dawn sighed and for a moment, Ash genuinely believed her.

"Dawn, you're here!" Gary exclaimed as he walked down the stairs.

Now Ash realized it… she had come back to steal his man… if Gary was his man after what had happened.

"Oh…" Ash couldn't find words to express how angry he was right then, not to Gary, not to Dawn… to himself.

Dawn was also wearing something formal, a blue dress, and Gary was wearing a tuxedo just like his grandfather… were Gary and Dawn going to the same party his mother and professor Oak were attending to?

"Ready to go?" Gary asked approaching Ash and Dawn.

"Yes." Dawn smiled.

"Here, wait for me in the car, I just need to go check something in the lab," Gary gave Dawn his car's keys.

"Sure," Dawn said taking the keys and walking to the car.

Ash was still standing in the middle of the entrance and as Dawn walked to Gary's sports car, Gary grabbed Ash's shoulder and took him to the living room just a couple steps behind them.

"It's not a date," Gary sighed looking into Ash's eyes.

"Why… why would I care?" Ash asked blushing, he was still angry.

"She really isn't trying to date me, or make me fall in love with her, she's just trying to be friends with me," Gary said trying to convince Ash.

Ash looked away, still blushing and angry, but mostly, jealous.

Jealous that Gary looked so handsome… and he wouldn't be there with him to see him look so handsome for the rest of the night, jealous that he wouldn't be dancing with him.

"That's fine… I'm not going to tell you who to go out with and who not to," Ash said still not facing Gary.

"I know you're mad… we will talk about this when I come back, alright?"

"Fine, whatever."

"Ashy," Gary sighed grabbing Ash's chin gently and forcing him to face him. "You're the only one, I mean it," Gary sighed with a smile.

Now Ash blushed more as his anger started to disappear.

"You… you look so handsome," Ash said with a nervous smile.

"Oh, Ashy boy, don't say that!" Now Gary blushed.

"Go, she's waiting for you," Ash sighed.

"Thank you." Gary smiled and gave Ash a sweet kiss.

Ash trembled and he felt he was about to melt. When Gary pulled his lips apart from Ash's, Ash grabbed Gary's head and gave him another kiss.

"Promise me these are the only two kisses you are going to have tonight," Ash said nervous.

"I can't promise that… not if that means the only two kisses I'm going to have with you tonight." Gary winked and walked out of the mansion.

Ash stood there, watching Gary leave. Ash was now more determined than ever, Gary was his man… his one and only… his other pokéball half.

 **-o-**

Still in front of the mansion, hiding behind a couple of bushes across the street, Team Rocket was waiting for everyone to leave.

"Alright, the nerd and his girlfriend just left, are we going in?" Meowth asked.

"But the dork is still there," James commented.

"And we know he's the one we need to get out," Jessie added.

"So, what now?" Meowth questioned.

"We can create a distraction to get him out," James proposed.

"What's on your mind?" Jessie asked curious.

 **-o-**

Ash finished his movie and he was about to go to the kitchen and have dinner but then he heard something from the street.

"Wo-bbuffet! Wo-bbuffet!"

"What's that?" Ash asked himself walking to the door of the mansion and opening it.

"Wo-bbuffet! Wo-bbuffet!" Team Rocket's wobbuffet was constantly exclaiming as he was walking down the street.

"Huh?" Ash asked confused but at the same time, really curious to find out why that strangely familiar wobbuffet was walking down the street.

Ash grabbed his keys to the mansion and then he closed the door behind him.

"Hey! Wait up!" Ash exclaimed running after wobbuffet.

"Now's our chance!" Jessie exclaimed running to the mansion as Ash ran away from it, following wobbuffet.

James and Meowth followed Jessie as well.

"How are we going to come in?" James asked.

"Let me do this!" Meowth exclaimed jumping and grabbing the doorlock and immediately unlocking it using his claws.

"Meowth, you're a genius!" Jessie exclaimed excited.

"We don't have much time, let's go!" Meowth exclaimed running into the mansion and Jessie and James followed him after closing the door behind them.

Team Rocket ran through the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen until they walked out to the backyard where dozens of pokémon were waiting for dinner.

"Pika pi?" Ash's pikachu asked confused as he watched Team Rocket in the backyard.

"Bulbasaur!" Ash's bulbasaur exclaimed angrily, he recognized the evil grunts.

And in less than five seconds, all the Pokémon in the backyard surrounded Team Rocket and all of them looked pretty mad at them.

"Jessie, I'm scared!" James exclaimed hugging Jessie.

"I guess we didn't think this through," Meowth said nervously laughing.

And in that moment, all the pokémon released their most powerful attacks, sending Team Rocket flying to the distance.

"Team Rocket's blasting off again!"

 **-o-**

Ash was still running after wobbuffet when he saw what it looked like a shooting star, but in reality, it was Team Rocket blasting off again.

"Huh? A shooting star?" He asked himself admiring the flying object.

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet exclaimed realizing his friends were the ones flying away and now he ran ten times faster than before, trying to catch up with them.

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed seeing wobbuffet run away very fast and he gave up. "Good luck finding whoever you're trying to find, buddy," he sighed watching wobbuffet disappear in the distance.

 **-o-**

Ash got back to the mansion and he didn't notice anything different, he would never know Team Rocket broke in and tried to steal the pokémon.

Ash had dinner and after that he went to his room, he was rather tired and even if it was still early, he took a shower and went to bed.

 **-o-**

About three hours later, Ash woke up thinking it was the next day but then he saw the clock next to the bed and realized it was only 10:00pm. Ash got out of the bed and walked downstairs, still wondering if Gary would arrive anytime soon, but he knew the party could go on until midnight, if that's where Gary and Dawn were going to go.

He was wearing clean clothes he put on after taking a shower but he was still wearing black pants and a white t-shirt, not that he had a wide variety of clothes.

Ash decided to spend some time with his pokémon and he realized the pokémon usually had dinner at 9:00pm and since both Gary and professor Oak were out, he decided to feed the pokémon himself.

Ash got out to the backyard and the moment the pokémon saw him, they all made a line after grabbing their food plates, Ash realized the poor pokémon must have been starving for over an hour and he felt guilty for forgetting that, but then again it was Gary's fault because he was the one who should have told him to feed the pokémon during his absence.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

And with a smile, he started feeding the pokémon.

 **-o-**

About ten minutes later, Gary and Dawn arrived at the mansion.

"I'm sorry we had to leave so early, but I forgot to feed the pokémon and it's already been over an hour past their dinner time," Gary sighed as he got out of the car.

"Don't worry, Gary, I had a lot of fun," Dawn said getting out of the car too. "And besides, I have the event I told you about very early tomorrow, so it's fine."

"It must be quite exhausting, I mean, traveling to all different regions constantly for these events," Gary sighed.

"It was at first but you get used to… how sad is that?" She asked laughing.

"Is… your boyfriend fine with it?" Gary asked trying not to sound too meddling.

"It was difficult at first," Dawn sighed. "But things are quieter now," she added with a smile.

"I'm glad to hear that." Gary smiled.

They both walked into the mansion and they headed straight to the kitchen.

Ash was outside, he had just finished giving the pokémon dinner and he heard when Gary and Dawn got back, Ash ran and hide behind some bushes next to the lab.

Gary saw all the pokémon eating and Ash running to hide behind some bushes next to the lab. Then he turned around and stopped Dawn.

"Why don't we change our clothes first?" Gary put his arms on Dawn's shoulders, asking that question with a lot of nervousness.

Dawn smiled. "I understand, Gary."

"You… do?" Gary asked confused.

"Yeah, I know feeding the pokémon must be some sort of personal thing to do, I don't want to bother you with my presence." She smiled.

It wasn't that true but Gary could use that as an excuse to get rid of Dawn for the moment.

"I'm sorry," he sighed.

"That's okay, besides, I really need to take a shower and get some sleep, I will really need all my energy tomorrow. I can take the same room I took last time, right?"

"That's right," Gary said with a smile.

"Well, good night, Gary," she said giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Good night, Dawn." Gary smiled watching her leave.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. Then he turned to the backyard again and he saw Ash looking at him, he was standing right in front of the lab door, next to the flowerpots Delia had placed between the door and one of the lab's windows.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

He smiled to Gary, it wasn't a happy smile, just a smile. And then he entered the lab.

 **-o-**

 **Author's note: M content ahead, please proceed with caution.**

 **-o-**

He was standing in front of the door, wondering what would happen next, he wasn't completely sure, but he had the feeling that crossing that door also meant crossing the point of no-return.

Gary entered the lab, the lights were still off, the only lights illuminating the place were the backyard's lights and the moonlight itself.

Gary took a few steps to the other side of the lab, trying to catch a glimpse of Ash, wherever he was hiding. Then Ash appeared behind him and Gary turned to see him.

The light was weak but it was enough for them to see each other, it was enough for Ash to see Gary was still looking so handsome in that tuxedo. It was enough for Gary to see Ash was wearing the same pants and the same white t-shirt, or at least he thought that, and to see Ash trembling.

"Ashy, is everything alright?" Gary asked worried.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary took a step closer to Ash to take a better look at him.

"My mind… tells me to get away from you, to make my bags and leave to Alola, Gary…" Ash sighed closing his eyes.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"But…" Ash said opening his eyes. "My heart… and my body… beg for you," Ash sighed putting his left hand on Gary's shoulder and grabbing Gary's left hand with his right hand.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"What's the worth of all this darkness… of all this hiding… if I can't have you like I want to," Gary sighed.

"Gary…" Ash sighed looking into Gary's eyes. "I can't stand it… I can't stand seeing you with Dawn… or anyone, even imagining it makes me rage," Ash said touching Gary's neck slowly.

"Ash…"

Ash closed his eyes. "Kiss me, Gary…"

Gary put his hands around Ash's head. "If I kiss you, Ash… there's no going back," Gary sighed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I want you to make me yours, Gary… I want you to make love to me," Ash sighed swallowing his fear.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. He swallowed the last little drop of fear left he had, and then, Ash grabbed Gary's hand and he gently kissed it, and in a second he grabbed Gary's hair and pulled him close to him, kissing him with more passion than ever.

Gary put his hands on Ash's hair and they walked slowly across the room, among passionate kisses in the dark. At certain moment, Ash jumped on Gary's arms and the kissing continued among the flames they had created.

Gary walked until they reached a wall, Ash pushed his back strongly against it, supporting all his weight on Gary's legs.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Ash took off his t-shirt as Gary took off his jacket. Then Ash started unbuttoning Gary's shirt, slowly revealing Gary's chest, piece by piece, as Gary started kissing Ash's neck.

Ash moaned constantly, and when he unbuttoned the last button on Gary's shirt; Gary let go of the shirt and threw it to the floor with the rest of the clothes.

It was now only pants and slacks, both shirtless. Ash kept pushing his back against the wall as Gary grabbed Ash's wrists and raised them to the air and pushed them against the wall too. Gary kept kissing Ash's neck and Ash's moans kept turning on the flame in the darkness, their only light.

Then Gary's kisses started descending, making their way to Ash's chest. Gary gently took Ash to the floor, now Ash's back was lying against it and Gary was on top of him. Gary kept kissing Ash's body until he reached Ash's pants.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

And Gary took off Ash's pants slowly, leaving Ketchum wearing only his boxers. It was evident the flame and the passion between them could enlighten the whole room, even if it was in complete darkness.

But they were tired of the darkness they had lived on during the last few weeks, the darkness of hiding their feelings for each other… and the darkness of trying to fight the feeling to be with each other in a more intimate and passionate way.

Gary gently touched Ash's neck with his hand, then he made his way from the neck to Ash's boxers. Ash moaned when he felt Gary's touch arrive to the most intimate part of his body, but he wasn't scared anymore.

The passion kept the fire burning, lightening not only the room... but also Ash and Gary.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary was about to take the last piece of clothing left on Ash, but before he could do it, Ash touched his neck and they looked eye to eye.

"Be gentle," Ash sighed with a smile.

Gary nodded and smiled back to make sure Ash remained calm.

Gary put his hands on Ash's boxers, and he slowly took them off, revealing the only part of Ash's body Gary didn't know.

Maybe it was the tender moonlight illuminating the scene, not too bright, not to dark, just perfect… but when Gary saw Ash's most intimate part, he thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen until then.

Ash felt fragile for a moment, he was right there, lying on the floor, completely naked, but seconds later he felt safe because he trusted Gary completely.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary touched Ash's dick for the very first time and Ash moaned as he closed his eyes. Ash had never touched himself, so this feeling was a new discovery, he had no idea that someone touching him would feel so good and give him so much pleasure.

Ash felt something coming out of his member, something moisturizing that soon covered its head. And he also felt it growing bigger, Ash had never thought that it would get bigger by just touching it, he thought it would only get big during the mornings after he woke up, or after having one of those wet dreams, yes, Ash was that innocent.

Gary examined Ash's dick slowly, as he touched it from head to base, then he looked at the balls under it, and then he looked at the small amounts of pubic hair around that area. Gary felt his hands getting watery after a couple of seconds, then he realized it was Ash's precum what had been wetting his dry fingers.

Gary returned his eyes to Ash's face, Ash was tenderly watching him, Ash nodded without Gary even asking a question, they were somehow connected in a new level. Gary nodded back and he knew what he was about to do next.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary laid on the floor, his head close to Ash's member, he was still grabbing it gently with his hand, looking at Ash at all moments; and then Gary touched the head of Ash's member with something else than his hand: his tongue.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaah!" Ash exclaimed, aroused, feeling a ring of fire surround his complete naked body.

Gary felt proud as he watched Ash get so turned on by just touching the head of his penis with his tongue, then he proceeded, he licked it from base to top and when he got to the head Ash moaned even higher. And that's when Gary felt something in his tongue for the first time… he hadn't sensed anything from the base to below the head… but once he licked the head, he felt Ash's own flavor… sweet.

Gary's tongue made its way back to the base and back to the head a couple more times, Gary just loved to see Ash's face when he moaned, he looked so cute with those blushing cheeks and that messy hair.

Gary finally decided he wanted to taste the whole intimacy of Ash in one go, so he opened his mouth, watering its inside with his own saliva first, and then he kissed the head once, twice, three times… to finally go all the way in, introducing Ash's sweetness into his mouth… completely.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Ash moaned deeply, feeling the rush of the blood running through his veins, it was then when he first learned his member was a muscle of his body.

Gary let Ash's member out of his mouth after keeping it inside for a few seconds, now the flavor was sweeter with a few sparkles of salty. Gary was a scientist but it was just then when he first learned how the human body can have its own taste and odor… and that could sometimes lead to amazing results.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

Gary looked back to Ash again, his face was now redder, he looked cuter now. Gary touched his own humid lips with his not so dry fingers, sensing something that belong to Ash moisturizing them… he wanted more, and he went back… he gave Ash another blowjob, only to hear him moaning stronger this time.

"Aaaaaah, aaaaah, aaaaaah, aaaaaaaaaah, aaaaaaaaaah! Stop it, I'm about to… aaaaaaaah!" Ash exclaimed releasing all the heat inside Gary's mouth.

"I'm sorry!" Ash exclaimed blushed and nervous of having cum inside Gary's mouth.

Gary let Ash's dick out of his mouth, not before licking every single white liquid left, then he licked his own lips and he smiled to Ash.

"How could you have done that?!" Ash exclaimed covering his face with his hands, shocked by the fact Gary had swallowed his… his… that white thing that had come from inside him.

Gary laughed, he knew the moment he had fallen in love with Ash Ketchum that making love to him would be quite an experience involving everything, a comic interlude included.

"It's fine, Ashy-boy, you taste delicious, and I know you're healthy," Gary smiled touching Ash's chest and stomach.

Ash was still covering his face, he was so embarrassed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out. Then he realized it had all been Gary to him for the past minutes… he felt it was just right to reciprocate everything.

So, Ash jumped surprisingly over Gary, now he was on top on him.

"I like this wild side of you," Gary said with a laugh as Ash put his hands on his boxers.

Gary was already hard, as hard as he could get, and he wasn't dry at all, he was moisturized as well; he had turned on a lot during the past few minutes.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

And Ash took off Gary's boxers and he finally saw Gary's dick for the first time. Ash could notice it was longer than his.

Ash did the exact same thing Gary had done to him, he felt safer that Gary had done it first, because else he wouldn't have known what to do at all.

"Oooooooooooh, aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaash!" Gary exclaimed feeling Ash sucking him with intense passion.

Ash sensed Gary's flavor with his tongue and mouth too, it was a little different from his own… Gary tasted bittersweet.

"Aaaaaaaaah, aah, aaaaaaaaaaaaah, aaaaah, I'm going to… Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaash!" Gary moaned releasing all of him inside Ash's mouth too.

They didn't do much after that, it was their first time after all, but they had enjoyed every second of it, their sexuality was still starting to bloom but they were already synchronized. They laid together on the floor for a long time after their releases, Ash lying on Gary's chest, Gary caressing Ash's hair, Ash touching Gary's chest… they were one… they had become two halves of a whole.

Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak had made love to each other.

 **-o-**

They were still on the floor, exhausted, naked. Their bodies were wet, their chests were touching each other, and all their clothes were lying on the floor, next to them.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"You're so beautiful," Gary sighed looking into Ash's eyes.

"And you're so handsome," Ash sighed stroking Gary's hair.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

And even if they had released all the passion inside them, their lips were still hungry for kisses.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I… Gary… I… I love you, Gary," Ash sighed after a long kiss.

"Ash," Gary sighed, feeling exhausted, with the least amount of energy left.

Gary fell over Ash, he laid his head on Ash's chest and for a moment he could listen to Ash's heartbeat in an harmonious and beautiful beat.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I love you, Ashy," Gary sighed closing his eyes.

There was only silence between them after that, comfortable silence. They had finally made love with each other, and they had finally confessed their love for each other, they loved each other.

Ash's chest was very comfortable, it had quickly become Gary's favorite pillow to rest his head on. Ash looked to the ceiling as he stroked Gary's hair, he didn't have the slightest regret of giving himself to Gary… it had been the most exciting, precious, and beautiful moment of his life so far.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

None of them said anything else, they knew the silence was good, they needed to rest and relax to recover the energy they had lost moments before.

And suddenly, a flowerpot was broken outside… after something… or someone, accidentally kicked it.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

"Oh crap! Someone saw us!" Ash exclaimed in fear, immediately standing up and grabbing his clothes from the floor.

"Ashy, calm down, I'm sure it was just a pokémon, they're dozens of them out there," Gary stood up and tried to calm Ash down.

"It could have been your grandfather or my mother, oh no! We're ruined!" Ash exclaimed, his body trembling, his feet almost crumbling.

"Nobody saw us, Ashy! They're still at the party, nobody is here in the mansion!"

"How could you be so calm? There's the possibility someone saw us lying on the floor, naked!" Ash exclaimed in a very hysterical tone as he put his boxers on.

"I just try to be optimistic about it," Gary sighed.

"Oh dear lord! What about Dawn?!" Ash shouted terrified in the middle of putting his t-shirt.

"She did not see us, nobody saw us! Let's not ruin the night so magical we just had," Gary sighed.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"You… might be right… but we have to make sure nobody saw us, let's get dress and go back to the mansion, if neither your grandpa nor my mother are there, that will really make me feel a lot better," Ash sighed.

"Alright, Ashy, if that's what you need to keep calm, that's what we'll do," Gary said grabbing his clothes from the floor.

"I wish I could see you like this all the time." Ash smiled admiring Gary's naked body.

"Ashy-boy!" Gary exclaimed blushed.

"Come on, get dress, you handsome," Ash winked at Gary and slapped his butt.

"Ashy!" Gary exclaimed completely embarrassed as Ash laughed.

Ash put on his pants and let Gary get dressed, then he walked to the window and he saw the broken flowerpot lying on the floor, he really wished it had been a pokémon and not a person.

 **-o-**

Ash and Gary got out of the lab after making sure there was no evidence left that could suggest they had spent the night there, when they got out, they walked through the backyard and saw most pokémon already asleep, that wasn't good news but Gary grabbed his hand and Ash decided to stay positive.

When they entered the kitchen, they saw the lights off in the living room which could only indicate professor Oak and Delia hadn't arrived yet, unless they had already gone to their rooms.

"I'll go check on their bedrooms, you stay here in case they come back, okay, Ashy?"

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Okay," Ash sighed.

"I'll go check on Dawn as well, just to make sure it wasn't her."

Gary walked to the stairs but Ash quickly stopped him by grabbing his wrist.

"Something wrong, Ashy?" Gary turned to see Ash.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Whatever happens… I just want you to know… I meant what I said back there," Ash sighed.

Gary smiled, realizing Ash meant the "I love you" part.

"I meant it too, Ashy," Gary said with a beautiful smile on his face Ash immediately cherished.

Ash smiled and let go of Gary's wrist, letting him make his way to Delia's, professor Oak's and Dawn's rooms.

 **-o-**

Gary knocked on his grandpa's room and he didn't get any response, which was good news.

Gary knocked on Delia's room and he didn't get any response, which was good news.

Then Gary knocked on Dawn's room and he did get a response, but since Dawn was wearing a towel over her head and her pajamas, it was good news.

"Hi, Gary, how did the feeding go?" Dawn asked with a smile.

"Excellent, I can't be any happier," Gary sighed.

"That's nice, so, what's going on?" She asked curious.

"I just wanted to check on you, how was your shower?"

"Oh, no, I took a bath, a very relaxing one," Dawn sighed with pleasure.

Gary was now happier because taking a bath meant lying in the bathtub for a very long time, which just reassured him she hadn't seen Ash and him, and that the flowerpot had been broken by just a pokémon.

"Now I want to take one," Gary joked and Dawn laughed with him. "Alright, I just came to check on that, good night, Dawn."

"Good night, Gary." She smiled to him and watched him leave.

 **-o-**

Gary ran down the stairs to the second floor and when he emerged on the top of the stairs of the living room, Ash turned to see him with hope in his eyes, hope that neither Delia, professor Oak nor Dawn had seen them.

And Gary couldn't find a better way to express his happiness than to jump with a lot of excitement and then run down the stairs to Ash.

A huge smile appeared on Ash's face and Gary ran towards him and gave him a big hug, one so strong it made both of them fall to the floor, but it didn't hurt, they were laughing on the floor, just like moments ago but this time they had their clothes on.

"I can't believe I was so paranoid about it," Ash laughed.

"It's okay, I knew there was the possibility but I just knew it wasn't the case," Gary said caressing Ash's face.

"Not here, Gary, my mom and your grandpa can still arrive any minute," Ash said blushing and standing up.

"Can I kiss you at least?" Gary stood up and touched Ash's hair.

Ash closed his eyes, so as Gary, and their lips touched each other right there, in the middle of the living room in the Oak mansion; it was their second wildest act so far (the first one being making love in the Oak laboratory moments ago), but it was okay because nobody was around.

"Do you want to go out and get some ice cream?" Gary asked curiously.

"I'd love too, just take off your jacket, you look so formal and I look so casual," Ash joked.

"Fair enough," Gary said taking off his jacket so he was now only wearing his slacks and his shirt.

Then he grabbed Ash's hand and they left the Oak mansion.

 **-o-**

It was a beautiful night in Pallet Town, full of stars and with no clouds on sight. Ash and Gary walked to the ice cream parlor near the outskirts of town, which was around 7 blocks from the Oak mansion. They were walking in the middle of the night, no one was in the streets, it was just the two of them

The next day would be their last one together, before Ash would leave to Alola on the day after that, but neither of them realized it at the moment, they were enjoying their lives by the moment instead of worrying about the future.

"I can't believe we've come this far," Ash sighed as they kept walking down the street.

"How so?" Gary asked curious.

"We used to fight all the time, don't you remember?" Ash asked with a laugh.

"I remember one saying: there is only one step between love and hate," Gary said wistfully.

Ash laughed.

"What did you think of me when we were little?" Gary asked Ash with tremendous curiosity.

"Huh?" Ash asked caught off guard.

"C'mon, what did the little Ash Ketchum think of the little Gary Oak?"

Ash thought for a second.

"Well, I envied you because you lived in this huge house with dozens of pokémon, that's for sure," Ash laughed.

Gary smiled. "What about me? What did you think of me?"

"I thought you were a little brat, sorry, I may love you right now but right then, you used to be a total pain in the ass," Ash laughed.

Gary laughed too. "Fair enough."

"What did you think of me?" Now Ash was curious.

"Well, I envied you too," Gary sighed.

"You envied me?" Ash stopped, confused.

"You may think it's stupid, but the younger me didn't think that so," Gary laughed nervously.

"Why did you envy me?" Ash asked confused.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"My parents used to work all day, and when they weren't working, they were on a business trip, I didn't see them much… your parents were with you all the time, they picked you up from school, both of them together, and whenever they visited the mansion, it was the three of you… and even when they were at work, they were with you because they were my grandpa's assistants and you stayed in the mansion with me… I just… I just wished that the same thing could happen to me, you know? Being able to see my parents even when they were at work…" Gary sighed.

Ash was shocked and moved.

"I never…"

"That's fine, Ashy… it's just that… I miss my parents so much, and it's not your fault your parents were always there for you while mine weren't."

"Don't say that, Gary…"

"I know my parents loved me, Ashy… don't get me wrong, I know they worked so they could give me the life they wanted me to have… but they died when I was five years old… and I don't have many memories of the three of us together… most of the things I know are because of photo albums and a couple of videotapes…"

Ash didn't say anything, he hugged Gary and let him cry on his shoulder, he knew he needed it.

"I just… I still don't understand why they had to die so young… I was so young…" Gary said among tears.

"I don't know much about life and all that stuff but there's one thing I'm sure of… I know your parents are proud of the man you've become," Ash said hugging Gary.

"You really think so?"

"Of course I do! Look at you!" Ash exclaimed letting go of the hug and smiling as he looked at Gary. "You're handsome, you're smart, you're a nice person, you're fun, you're…"

Gary kept crying but he was now smiling as Ash kept saying all those nice things about him.

"I'm happy, Ashy, you make me happy," Gary said grabbing Ash's hand.

"You make me happy too, Gary," Ash said.

"Thank you for what you said," Gary said lying his head on Ash's shoulder.

"I'm just telling the truth," Ash smiled and they kept walking down the street.

 **-o-**

When they got to the ice cream parlor, they had left all the sorrow behind, Gary was now smiling all the time and Ash couldn't feel anything but joy.

"I'll give you extra points if you remember my favorite ice cream flavor," Gary said to Ash as they walked to the cashier.

"Extra points?" Ash asked laughing.

"Just tell me if you remember," Gary said laughing.

"Good evening, gentlemen, can I take your order?"

"Two double ice creams, please" Ash said to the cashier.

"Which flavors?"

"A strawberry one for me and a banana chocolate one for the gentleman," Ash said proudly.

"You remember!" Gary almost jumped in excitement.

"I have a good memory," Ash said proudly.

"Alright, two double ice creams, strawberry and banana chocolate, is that all?" The cashier asked.

"Make them triple, this gentleman has just earned it," Gary said smiling.

"Good!" The cashier smiled too.

 **-o-**

Gary and Ash were walking back to the mansion, eating their triple ice creams, it had been a night full of sweet flavors so far.

"Now one of the things I do remember about my parents and I is that we used to come to that ice cream parlor all the time," Gary sighed.

"You did?" Ash asked licking his strawberry ice cream like a lickitung.

"Yeah, I remember the first time I ordered for the banana chocolate ice cream, it might be a silly story, though," Gary said a little embarrassed.

"I want to hear that story, come on," Ash insisted.

"Alright," Gary sighed licking his banana chocolate ice cream before telling the story.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"It was 13 years ago, I was 4, my parents and I went to that ice cream parlor for the first time; when we got there, we seated on a table and when the waitress came to pick our orders, I wasn't sure which flavor to have, I had had ice cream before but only strawberry, vanilla and chocolate, my mom told me that in that ice cream parlor they had more than 20 flavors and I was really excited, I wanted to taste them all," Gary said looking to the sky.

 **-o-**

 _13 years ago_

"I'll have a double chocolate ice cream," Gary's father ordered.

"I'll have a double banana ice cream," Gary's mother ordered.

"What about you, little champion?" The waitress asked Gary.

Little Gary was having a hard time finding out which flavor to have, he had heard his parents' choices but he didn't want to pick one of theirs because he didn't want the other one to feel bad about it.

"Can I have one ball of chocolate and one ball of banana?" Gary asked worried.

"Of course, champion, but why not two balls of banana chocolate?" The waitress asked curious.

"There is a banana chocolate ice cream?" Little Gary asked surprised.

"I'll bring you a triple banana chocolate ice cream, the extra ball is on the house," the waitress smiled.

"Thank you," Adeline smiled and the waitress left with the menus.

"I sense you had a reason for picking up one ball of banana and one ball of chocolate at first," Alexander said to his son.

"I just wanted my ice cream to have half of each of you," little Gary confessed.

"Aw! So poetic, like his grandfather," Adeline said with a smile.

 **-o-**

"And when the waitress brought us our ice creams and I tasted the banana chocolate ice cream… it was delicious, but I guess it had more sentimental value because the little me thought of that ice cream as a gift from my parents or something, if it makes sense," Gary said blushing.

"That was so sweet," Ash said with a smile.

"Yeah," Gary sighed.

They kept walking in silence, tasting their ice creams.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I miss my father," Ash sighed.

Gary knew Ash's father had left on a pokémon journey when Ash was around 5 years old, but other than that, he didn't know if Ash had ever seen his father again after that, he did know Ash's father sent him and his mother money every month because he had heard that from eavesdropping on a conversation between his grandfather and Delia.

"Have you seen him since he left?" Gary asked worried the answer would be a no.

Ash tried to smile, but he couldn't, that's when Gary held his hand, to make sure he knew he wasn't alone.

"Whenever I ask my mom about him, she just changes the topic, she doesn't like talking about him… I know she's still taking his money, how in the world would she be doing all the things she's doing to our house right now without his money?" Ash asked looking to the floor as they kept walking and holding hands.

"Do you have any idea where he is?"

"I haven't run into him in any of the regions I've been so far, but the chances of him and I traveling on the same regions are very small… and even if that was the case, he would recognize me and maybe hide from me…" Ash started crying and he lost control of his hand so his ice cream fell to the street.

"Ashy, don't cry on me," Gary threw his ice cream too and gave Ash a hug.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"You are the most wonderful human being on Earth, are you aware of that? Your heart is the purest, nicest and humblest." Gary looked into Ash's eyes as he smiled and took Ash's tears away with his finger.

"Thanks," Ash smiled weakly trying to hold back his tears.

"I mean it, Ash, I feel so lucky to have fallen in love with you, and I feel even luckier that someone like you fell in love with me, with this arrogant guy like me."

"You're not arrogant!"

Gary laughed. "I used to be, you can't deny it. Gary Oak was here, Ash Ketchum is a loser." He kept laughing.

Ash laughed so hard remembering that time Gary wrote that on a sign.

"So, if your father is still sending money to your mother, I'm sure he still cares about you… but maybe he's scared to come back into your life after leaving… it took my grandma a lot of courage to do it so, just… be patient to him."

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"I just… I just wish to know where he is, so I could go visit him sometime."

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"We still have some time before your mother and my grandpa return… let's go to your house."

"Huh?"

"Do you think you can find one of those envelopes your father sends to your mother? The ones with money, I'm sure there's his address or at least the city or town he is right now on the latest one."

"Are you serious? You could… you could find where he is just with that information?" Ash asked surprised.

"Yeah, I'm completely sure, Ashy."

"Alright, let's first stop by the mansion, I need the keys to my house, my mom probably left them in her room.

 **-o-**

About 20 minutes later, Ash and Gary arrived at the Ketchum residence. It was late at night, almost midnight.

Ash opened the main door and he was surprised to see the house was almost finished, he wanted to go to the backyard and take a look at the pool to see if it was ready but he knew time wasn't a luxury he could take.

Ash and Gary carefully walked through the small living room and then they took the stairs to Delia's bedroom, which was in the second floor across from Ash's room.

Ash opened the door to his mother's room, using the keys also because the door was locked.

Ash and Gary entered the room and Gary turned on the lights. Even if she hadn't slept there for over a month, Delia's room was clean and neat.

Ash didn't feel good about breaking into her mother's room like that, but he was looking for answers and his mom's room was the only place he would get them.

"So, where do we search?" Gary asked walking around the room.

"I'll check on her closet, why don't you check under the mattress?" Ash proposed as he walked to his mom's closet.

"Alright," Gary agreed walking to the bed.

Ash opened the closet and Gary took out the mattress of the bed.

"This was easier than I expected," Gary said surprised when he saw dozens of photographs, photographs of Delia and Ash's father.

Ash walked to the bed after hearing Gary and he was shocked to see all those photographs.

"She has been seeing him all these years," Ash sighed looking at all the photographs in which his mother clearly aged, as well as his father.

There was a photograph of his parents in front of some ruins, the dragonspiral tower, in Unova.

There was a photograph of his parents in a beautiful beach in the Orange islands.

There was a photograph of his parents in a snowy town, Snowpoint city, in Sinnoh.

There was a photograph of his parents in Sootopolis city, in Hoenn.

There was a photograph of his parents in front of Lumiose tower, in Kalos.

"I'm sure there's an explanation, Ashy," Gary sighed putting his hand on Ash's shoulder.

"Why? Why has she kept this a secret from me?" Ash asked with tears coming out of his eyes.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. He didn't know what to say.

"I mean, I'm… kind of happy for her, after all these years traveling to all those regions on my own, I was worried my mom would get bored being all by herself in this house, now I know she has taken some small vacations with my father… but why hasn't she told me anything?" Ash tears began to fall more constantly.

Gary hugged Ash from behind, his arms would do the talking Ash needed.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out. Ash listened to Gary breathing in and breathing out, and somehow, that gave him peace. Ash closed his eyes as Gary kept breathing in and breathing out while still hugging him from behind.

Ash took a photograph, the one with his mother and his father in the ruins of the dragonspiral tower in Unova, then he noticed the photograph had the date on the back.

"This was taken last year," Ash smiled with tears on his eyes. Maybe he hadn't seen his father in a very long time, but at least his mother had.

"He's a handsome man, and your mom's so beautiful, now I know where you got your looks," Gary said with a smile.

Ash smiled.

"At least now you know things are good between him and your mom," Gary said.

"Yeah," Ash sighed. "Do you think she'll notice if I keep this? I just… I want to have this in my next journey."

"Take it, and if she notices it, she will have to talk to you about it."

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Alright."

 **-o-**

Ash and Gary returned to the Oak mansion. Ash was feeling better now, he had a recent photograph of his parents, being happy together, something about that photograph gave him hopes to see his father again, soon.

They were now in front of the Oak mansion. And at that moment, professor Oak and Delia Ketchum arrived in a cab.

"Ash, Gary, hey!" Samuel exclaimed getting out of the car and opening the door for Delia.

"Hey boys!" Delia exclaimed with a smile.

"How was the party?" Gary asked.

"I had a great time!" Delia exclaimed.

"I hadn't danced like that in years," Samuel said a little exhausted.

"Where were you? Why are you out this late at night?" Delia asked worried.

Ash got tensed, he didn't know how to answer that question.

"We just went out for a walk, that's all," Gary lied with a convincing smile and Ash quickly felt safe again.

"Well, let's go inside, why don't I make us all some hot chocolate?" Delia offered with joy.

"I'd love that!" Samuel exclaimed and he walked to the mansion.

Delia smiled to see professor Oak so excited. "Okay, guys, I'll see you inside."

Now Ash and Gary were alone.

"This has been quite a night," Ash said with a laugh, remembering everything that had happened: their first time, them eating ice cream and them sneaking into his mom's room.

Gary quickly gave Ash a kiss on his hair.

"I have a feeling we'll have more nights like this," Gary said after the kiss.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

It was their first of their two final days together before Ash would leave to Alola. And it became a real thing the moment the mail came. In an envelope, there was Ash's ticket to Alola, the one he had ordered about a week ago, but the moment he got it, he decided to hide it away, hoping that he could stop time.

Gary promised he would only work two hours in the lab and that then they would spend the rest of the day together, doing what exactly? Ash didn't care, all he wanted was to be with Gary, his Gary.

He and Gary had had breakfast together that morning, before the mail had arrived. It was just the two of them, Ash had to wake up early but he didn't mind, Gary would be free before 8:00am and then they would be together for the rest of the day.

"I promise, just two hours," Gary said as he washed his dishes.

"That's okay, I'll go back to sleep in the meantime," Ash said a little sleepy, yawning.

"Sounds good, feel free to have a wet dream about me," Gary teased.

"Gary!" Ash blushed. "Someone can come in!" Ash exclaimed as he looked behind, to the living room, but the lights were still off.

Gary couldn't stop laughing.

"Alright, I'll see you in two hours, but if you're not awake by then, I might join you in bed," Gary kept teasing.

"Stop it!" Ash exclaimed still blushing but he was enjoying the tease.

Gary walked to Ash and he quickly gave him a kiss.

"Gary!" Ash jumped off from his chair and he rushed to the living room, making sure nobody was around.

"You're so cute!" Gary exclaimed with a laugh.

"Don't play with me like that!" Ash exclaimed, still blushed.

Gary smiled. "Alright, I'll keep everything inside until we're alone, I promise."

"Thank you," Ash said. "Well, I'll go back to my room, good luck."

"Thank you, Ashy boy," Gary said as he walked out of the kitchen.

 **-o-**

Just as Ash was going up the stairs to the second floor, he ran into Dawn at the top of them.

"Good morning, Ash." She smiled to him.

He returned the smile to her, she was still one of his best friends even though she was after the man he loved (or at least that's what he thought).

"You're back," Ash said neither surprised not happy about it and Dawn could notice that.

"Well, I was back yesterday in the afternoon, I had left a small makeup bag from the last time I was here, then I went out with Gary to that party and we came back early, but I just stayed the night, I have my things at a hotel in Viridian city and I will leave tonight after a small coordinators' event," she informed.

"Oh!" Ash exclaimed now surprised and happy, he wanted to spend his last two days in the mansion with Gary and only Gary.

"I know we've had some problems lately, Ash, and I'm sorry for everything," she said out of nowhere, catching Ash off guard.

"Sorry?" Ash asked confused.

Dawn smiled. "You probably still think I'm after Gary, but he's just a friend, a good one, he's fun, he's smart and he does have his good looks, but I only feel friendship for him."

"Why are you telling me all this?"

Dawn smiled again. "I know that you care about Gary," she said and Ash blushed. "After all, I believe he's your best friend, not counting your pokémon of course," she laughed and Ash laughed too. "You're worried about him being in a long-distance relationship and not being happy, I get it."

"Yeah," Ash sighed realizing that's what Gary would have with him, a long-distance relationship.

"I'm sure he'll find someone, just as you and I did."

"Me?" Ash asked astonished.

Dawn laughed again.

"What's so funny? Tell me!" Ash exclaimed blushed and a little angry.

"You're leaving tomorrow, aren't you?" She asked him, changing the topic of the conversation.

"Yeah," Ash sighed.

"Try spending the rest of your time here with Gary, he's really found a good friend in you, and I know he's going to miss you after you're gone."

Ash's eyes started to water.

"Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine, thank you, and I'm sorry for everything as well."

"No problem," she said giving Ash a hug.

Ash wasn't expecting that hug and his eyes opened widely, the tears were on the edge of falling, he really needed to go to sleep.

"Well, I have to get going, is Gary in the lab?" She asked after hugging Ash.

Ash nodded.

"Good, I'll go say goodbye to him too, good luck on Alola," she said and then she took the stairs down.

"Thank you, Dawn, good luck on your coordinator activities," Ash said with a smile.

"Be seeing ya!" she winked and then she turned to the kitchen and disappeared out of Ash's sight.

 **-o-**

Gary was working on his computer, finishing his article, when Dawn entered the lab.

"Good morning," she said watching Gary with his glasses, focused on his computer screen.

"Dawn, you're up early!" Gary said surprised, he stood up from his chair and he walked to Dawn. "Oh, right, you have this event early this morning," he said remembering.

Dawn smiled. "I'm just here to say goodbye, it's been nice spending time with you."

"You can say that again," Gary said taking his glasses off and leaving them on the computer desk.

"How are you?"

"Honestly? I'm…" he said trembling.

"I know it can be hard, but when the other person's worth it, a long-distance relationship is not that bad, experience talking here," she smiled pointing at herself.

"It's just that, we have just gotten started and… and now we're going to be apart for a year?"

"You can always visit each other, or make videocalls, it's a good thing he's going to be in the same town for the next six months."

"I can't believe he's going back to school," Gary said with a laugh.

"Well, we all secretly knew our Ash Ketchum needed a little bit more of education," she joked and Gary couldn't help but laugh out loud with her.

"Thank you," Gary smiled.

"For what?" Dawn asked surprised.

"For being my friend, and for understanding me. This is usually Tracey's job but I had the brightest idea to give him a vacation just right before Ash came back to give a massive twist to my life." He laughed.

"I have to confess I didn't expect all of this when I first came here, but it's been nice seeing Ash so happy for something that's not pokémon-related."

"I wasn't expecting to feel what I feel for him, but I'm happy I feel what I feel for him now."

"I just wished he could have told me this, but I guess he's still afraid, promise me you'll take care of him."

"I will, I promise."

"Then my work here is done," she smiled giving Gary a hug.

"You can always come back visit me, I'm going to be very lonely for the next year, and you definitely have to meet Tracey, he's the best!"

Dawn laughed. "I'll definitely take your offer sometime."

 **-o-**

Almost two hours later, Gary was about to finish his article, he just needed to type one last reference and his job would be finished, thus he would be able to spend the whole day with Ash.

"Hey gramps, where's the pokémon book you lent me about a month ago? I need it for my last reference," Gary said after searching for it around the lab for ten minutes.

"Oh! I took it to the attic with some other stuff, I thought you had finished using it," Samuel said sorry.

"Don't worry, I'll go get it, thanks," Gary said leaving the lab.

When Gary entered the living room, he saw Ash sitting on a couch, watching some morning cartoons.

Ash's eyes sparkled with happiness when he saw Gary, that meant Gary was done with his job and now they could proceed with spending the day together.

"Hey!" Ash exclaimed running to Gary and jumping on his arms, almost throwing both of them to the floor.

"Hey, Ashy-boy, watch out!" Gary laughed as he held Ash on his arms.

"Sorry," Ash said blushing as he left Gary's arms and stood in front of him.

"I'm almost done, I just need to go grab a book from the attic."

"Oh! Can I join you?"

"Sure! We can even have some privacy there," Gary teased.

Ash blushed and his body trembled.

"Just kidding! Come on, let's go!" Gary exclaimed grabbing Ash's hand with his and going up the stairs.

Ash and Gary took the stairs to the second floor, then to the third floor, where their bedrooms were, and then to the fourth floor. At the end of the fourth floor there was a small wooden ladder that led to the attic.

"Do you remember we used to hide in here when we were kids?" Ash asked remembering his childhood days in the Oak mansion.

"Yeah," Gary sighed with a smile. "I remember one day we didn't tell our parents and they were so worried they had already called the police when we went down to have dinner."

"My mom was so mad," Ash laughed.

"It's been 13 years," Gary sighed.

"I feel so old," Ash laughed.

Gary took the wooden stairs and opened the small opening to the attic, and then he climbed the stairs to enter it.

Ash took the stairs after Gary.

"Wow! It's not like I remember it," Ash said surprised.

The attic was full of boxes and old objects, there was a piano on the corner and some furniture covered in plastic. And there was a lot of dust too.

The last time they were there together, the attic was pretty much empty space with a big rug in the middle, with some boxes in the corners, and the place was so clean.

"I know, I haven't been here since my parents…" Gary sighed.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Ash hugged Gary from behind, giving him support. So much for parents in two days.

"I assume most of these things are theirs," Ash said as Gary walked around the attic taking a look at the boxes.

Gary stopped in front of a particular box that was labeled as Adeline, Alexander & Christine.

"What's in that box?" Ash asked curious joining Gary in front of the box.

"I have no idea, maybe it's some photos of them," Gary said grabbing the box and taking it to the center of the attic, the rug was still there.

Gary put the box in the middle of the rug and he sat down in front of it, he didn't mind the dusty environment.

Ash sat down across from Gary, leaving the box between them.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Then he took all the strength needed and he opened the box.

"Newspapers?" Gary asked confused, recognizing the paper type.

 _Christine Oak found dead, family is shattered._

 _Elswood Enterprises CEO dies in terrible accident._

 _Sadness in the pokémon community: professor Samuel Oak's wife died._

 _Family and friends remember Christine Oak in a lovely memorial._

 _Alexander Oak runs Elswood Enterprises after his mother passed away._

 _One month after their tragic loss, the Oak family is still in duel._

 _The future of Elswood Enterprises._

"They're all related to my grandmother's faked death," Gary said shocked as he kept taking those newspapers out of the box.

"Elswood Enterprises?" Ash asked confused.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

Gary breathed in, again. Gary breathed out, again.

"My grandmother's company, it was passed to my parents after she faked her death… and my parents lost it a year after, the day they died in their accident… I've always thought… it was the guilt of losing the company what provoked their accident."

 **-o-**

 _13 years ago_

"Granny, gramps, my favorite ice cream flavor is banana chocolate!" little Gary exclaimed running through the mansion as soon as he and his parents got back from the ice cream parlor that night. Little did he know, his life was about to change drastically, and not just because he had finally found his favorite ice cream flavor.

Adeline and Alexander watched their son run happily to the kitchen, where Samuel and Christine were having a late-night coffee with some cookies, little did they know, their lives were about to change abruptly as well.

"Banana chocolate? That's a very interesting flavor, my dear," Christine said with a smile on her face as her grandson sat on the table with her and his grandpa. Little did she know, that night would be the last one she would spend with all the family together.

"Isn't that a combination of your parent's favorite flavors?" Samuel asked curious.

"Always intuitive, father," Alexander said rolling his eyes a little.

"What do you say we make banana chocolate muffins tomorrow?" Christine asked her grandson without knowing those muffins would never see the light of day.

"That sounds awesome!" little Gary almost jumped off the chair.

Samuel and Christine laughed to see their grandson so happy, but there was something in Adeline and Alexander faces… and they weren't smiles.

"I think it's time for me to go to bed, I had a really tiring day," Samuel said standing up and stretching his body.

"I'll join you in a moment, dear," Christine kissed her husband goodbye, without knowing it would be their last kiss.

"Good night, father."

"Good night, Samuel," Adeline said giving her father in law a kiss on the cheek.

"Good night, gramps! I love you," little Gary said still excited about the whole banana chocolate situation.

"Honey, it's getting late, you should go to bed right now," Adeline said to her son.

"Okay, but will you come read me a story?" little Gary asked curious.

"I'm sorry, champ, we finished the whole book last night but don't worry, we'll buy a new one tomorrow," Alexander said.

"Alright, I love you mom, I love you dad, I love you granny," Gary said to each person in the room just as he had told his grandfather, and then he hugged each of them to finally leave the kitchen and go to his room.

"I have a feeling you want to talk to me," Christine sighed.

"We can't do it here, mother," Alexander sighed.

"Fine, let's go to your father's laboratory," Christine said standing up and walking out to the backyard. She was calm, it was as if she had been expecting or waiting for that moment… because she had.

Alexander and Adeline followed Christine to professor Oak's lab. Once they were all in, what would be their last conversation together, the three of them, started.

"They're back, aren't they?" Christine sighed, getting straight to the point.

"We're afraid so, we got this memo this afternoon," Alexander took out an envelope from his jacket and gave it to Christine.

Christine opened the envelope and started reading the message, her eyes told everything, her expression of worry… and fear.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

"How much do they want now?"

"A million," Adeline sighed.

"What? That's insane!" Christine exclaimed angrily.

"But mother…"

"We're not going to give them that ridiculous amount of money, we're not even sure if they have been bluffing the whole time!" Christine exclaimed madly.

"These people are serious, mother… see, that memo was attached to… a bomb," Alexander revealed.

"A bomb? What in heavens are you talking about?"

"It was in your office. When we found it, the bomb had just ten seconds left on the timer, we thought it was the end… but it suddenly stopped when it only had one second left," Adeline revealed.

"That pretty much tells us these guys are serious about their threats," Alexander added.

"We were just glad you took the day off," Adeline said.

Christine put her hand on her chest and sat down on a chair.

"Mother!" Alexander ran to see if his mother was fine.

"I'm fine! Don't worry about me!" Christine sighed.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

"I… I can't give up the whole company to them… I've worked my entire life for it…" Christine sighed. "Why don't we call the police?"

Adeline breathed in. Adeline breathed out.

"We're afraid the rest of the family if we do that," Adeline expressed with fear, fear that her son would get dragged to that situation.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out. She didn't want her husband to suffer for the situation either.

"So, this is it? We'll give them the money and what then? In a year, they will ask for the rest of the company?" Christine asked still angry.

"My father's job is enough to sustain this family, we'll be fine, and safe," Alexander sighed.

"There has to be something… some way to get rid of them… what if…"

"We're not faking your death, Christine, we already talked about that," Adeline interrupted.

"They don't know you got the memo! They think it was me who got it, don't they? So…"

"If you were dead, they would think no one else knew about the threat and they might not send it again," Adeline thought.

"We're not faking her death, Adeline!" Alexander exclaimed angry.

"But they have a problem with me, not you! If I was dead, I'm sure they'd just leave us alone!" Christine exclaimed.

"I'm your son, don't you think they would go after me next?"

"I'm completely sure Giovanni has his personal motives against me, not you, even if you are my son," Christine commented.

"That asshole…" Alexander said furious.

"Please… if I were dead… this family would finally get the peace they deserve," Christine insisted.

"By leaving my father widowed and Gary without his granny?" Alexander asked so angry he was about to cry.

"We have no choice, dear," Christine said looking down.

"What if they suspect we faked your death? Wouldn't it look odd to them that you die the moment you got this threat?" Alexander kept arguing with his mother.

"They wouldn't, I have the perfect idea," Christine answered.

"You already know how to fake your death? How long have you been planning this?" Adeline asked worried.

"Since the last threat we got," Christine sighed.

"I'm not going to let you do this, I won't!" Alexander shouted crying, and then Adeline hugged him.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

"I want the best for this family…" Christine sighed with a smile.

"Then stay with it and don't leave it! They can have Elswood Enterprises if that's what they want, but I'm not going to let them take you away from us!"

"My mind's made up, dear," Christine said standing up.

"I'm not letting you do this, I'll lock you in this room if that's what it takes!"

"I'm sorry dear, know that I love you, and I'm sorry too, Adeline, please, don't tell Gary and Samuel about this, knowing my death is fake will only endanger them," Christine said determined as she walked to the door of the lab.

"Stop!" Alexander stood between his mother and the door.

"Please, there must be a better way to overcome this," Adeline said worried.

"I'm afraid there's not… sorry honey, I love you," Christine said closing her eyes and taking what it looked like a medical needle from her pocket.

Alexander's eyes opened widely when he saw his mother holding that thing, but it was too late to react, Christine quickly applied whatever liquid there was in the needle on Alexander's shoulder and he fell to the floor, unconscious.

"Christine!" Adeline exclaimed in fear, trying to stop her.

"Sorry dear," Christine applied the needle to her daughter in law as well and she fell to the floor next to her husband.

Then, before leaving the lab, she took out her cellphone and texted someone: " _The time has come, meet me outside the mansion as soon as possible."_

"When you wake up tomorrow, I'll be dead already, I hope you can forgive me one day," Christine sighed as she got out of the lab, not before giving her son and her daughter in law a farewell kiss.

And as she walked through the backyard, she contemplated everything for the last time, appreciating it more than ever… the trees, the flowers, the pokémon… it was something interesting, she hadn't been a pokémon person in the past… then she married one of the best pokémon professors in the world, and she became so passionate about them.

Then she walked through the kitchen and she cried when she thought of Gary and how they would never make those muffins together… and how she would never see him grow up… then she thought about her husband… her beloved husband, the only man she had ever loved… and because she loved him so much, she was determined to go on with her plan.

Then she walked to the living room and she looked at the family pictures before leaving…

"Jiggly?" her old friend, her jigglypuff had followed her from the backyard, she knew she was worried.

"I'm going to miss you," Christine said with tears on her eyes.

"Jiggly!" her jigglypuff exclaimed with tears on her eyes as well.

"Take care of Gary, please."

She took her jigglypuff into her arms and gave her a goodbye hug. Then jigglypuff returned to the backyard, still crying.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

She finally opened the main door to leave, and someone was already expecting her.

"Ready to go, miss Oak?" a familiar man asked her, he was waiting for her outside a car.

"Cut the formalities, Reid, let's go," Christine said getting into the car.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Gary kept taking out the newspaper notes about her grandma's fake death, but then the notes changed their common topic to an even darker one:

 _Elswood Enterprises faces crisis._

 _Elswood Enterprises: bankrupted?_

 _Elswood Enterprises on the edge of despair._

 _Alexander Oak loses Elswood Enterprises._

 _Alexander Oak and wife die in a tragic accident after losing Elswood Enterprises._

 _Was it a suicide?_

 _Business world is paralyzed with death of Alexander and Adeline Oak._

 _The legacy of Elswood Enterprises._

 _The Oak family in duel once again._

The tears on Gary's eyes appeared in less than a second, he was devastated just to look at all those newspapers' notes, remembering the tragic deaths of his parents and how it all had affected him… he was a child back then… a little baby who lost his grandmother one year and his parents the very next one. Gary Oak was broken.

Gary tried to breathe in. Gary tried to breathe out.

But he couldn't. His heart was shattered. He felt nothing could give him the peace he needed… the peace he deserved.

Ash didn't know what to do, he knew Gary was in despair, so the first thing he did was move the box with all those newspapers away from Gary, and then he hugged him with all his strength.

Gary cried on Ash's shoulder, deeply and intensely. He sobbed, he cried, he shouted in pain.

He felt there was no tomorrow.

 **-o-**

 _12 years ago_

"Mommy, daddy, you're back!" Gary exclaimed with enthusiasm when he saw his parents come back from their business trip. It was early, around 10:00am in the morning.

"Hello, there! Champion!" Alexander exclaimed with excitement as he grabbed his son into his arms.

"I missed you!" little Gary exclaimed as he hugged his dad.

"We missed you too, honey," Adeline said with a smile.

"Here," Alexander said giving Gary to Adeline so she could hold him in his arms.

"He's not a baby anymore," Adeline said with a small laugh.

"I can't believe he's five years old already," Alexander sighed.

"Time sure flies," Adeline said letting her son rest his head on her shoulder as she held him.

"You're back!" Delia exclaimed walking into the living room. She was wearing a lab coat, she used to be professor Oak's assistant back in the day.

"I think that's enough," Adeline laughed putting Gary on the floor.

"Why don't you go play with Ash?" Alexander asked his son.

"I'm mad at him!" little Gary exclaimed.

Alexander and Adeline laughed.

"What happened this time?" Adeline asked, she was used to that particular situation, Gary being mad at Ash.

"He ignores me! He just pays attention to all grandpa's pokémon!" little Gary exclaimed.

"I'm sure it's not that bad, why don't you join him and play with him and all those pokémon?" Adeline suggested.

"I… I guess I can do that…" little Gary said, thoughtful.

"Now go, we need to talk to Ash's mom about something very important," Alexander told his son.

"Okay!" Little Gary exclaimed with a smile and he left to the backyard.

"What's going on?" Delia asked worried.

"Where's Reid?" Alexander asked.

"He's in the lab, what's going on?"

"Thanks," Alexander smiled, ignoring Delia's question for the second time, and he left to the lab, leaving Delia and Adeline all by themselves.

"Can you now tell me what's going on?" Delia asked Adeline.

"Not here, c'mon, let's go." Adeline smiled walking to the stairs.

"Okay, I guess," Delia said still confused and she followed Adeline to wherever she was going.

 **-o-**

Alexander entered into the lab. There was only one man in there and it wasn't professor Oak.

This man was younger, he was about the same age as Delia, Adeline, and Alexander. He was also wearing a lab coat. He was also professor Oak's assistant.

His name was Reid, Reid Ketchum.

"Hey, man, you're back!" Reid exclaimed with enthusiasm when he saw Alexander. He left whatever he was doing and he ran to him to give him a big welcome hug.

Alexander couldn't help but smile, after all, they were best friends.

"How was the trip?" Reid asked with curiosity, sitting on a chair.

Alexander sat on a chair next to his best friend and remained silent for a couple of seconds.

Alexander breathed in. Alexander breathed out.

He then turned to Reid and he smiled to him.

"What's wrong?" Reid asked worried.

Alexander kept smiling until he just couldn't do it anymore.

"It's just that… when we were on the plane… we had a major turbulence… honestly, I thought we wouldn't make it…" Alexander sighed.

"What?" Reid asked breathless.

"Thank God we're fine," Alexander laughed a little. "But you know what I thought about during what I thought were my last moments?" Alexander sighed.

"Gary," Reid smiled.

"Yeah," Alexander sighed. "I thought I wouldn't be here to see him grow up and become a man… who would make me proud to my bones," Alexander began crying but the smiles never left his face. "I know that boy is going to do something really big, I just know it… and when I thought I wouldn't be there to see him do that…" Alexander couldn't finish that sentence.

"I know what you mean, I know Ash is going to do something special too, and I'm not only saying this just to keep the competition with you," he joked and Alexander laughed. "Ash has a special something with pokémon, he… I can't put in into words but it's like… he can see through them… he can reach their souls…" Reid sighed with sparkling eyes.

"We have wonderful sons, don't we?" Alexander asked with a smile.

"Yeah, we do," Reid sighed.

"Anyway, I want us to make a pact."

"A pact?" Reid asked surprised.

"If for any reason… I shall be gone… promise me you'll be a father to Gary."

Reid smiled to hear such a proposition coming from his best friend. "Only if you promise you'll do the same for my Ash."

Alexander smiled to hear his best friend's response.

"Thank you, man." Alexander said standing up.

"Wait, you didn't bring me any souvenirs?" Reid asked offended.

Alexander laughed out loud. "Of course I did! C'mon, you idiot," he hugged Reid. "Hey, what do you say we spend the day together? Just us best friends."

"Are you serious?" Reid asked with a laugh.

"Yeah, I miss hanging out with my best buddy."

"I still have some stuff to do, and I wouldn't want to leave Delia do the rest all by herself," Reid said feeling sorry.

"C'mon, man! It's been ages since the last time it was just you and me. I'm sure Delia will understand."

Reid gave the idea a thought for about two seconds. "Alright, you got me," Reid said with laughter.

"That's my man!" Alexander exclaimed with enthusiasm, hugging his best friend. "Hey, what do you say we bring the kids with us? I think that'd be fun."

"Sure!" Reid exclaimed overjoyed.

And both of them walked out of the lab to pick up Ash and Gary to spend the whole day together with them.

 **-o-**

Delia and Adeline entered what it seemed to be little Gary's room.

"What are we doing here, Adey?" Delia asked worried since the moment she followed her best friend to the stairs.

Adeline breathed in. Adeline breathed out.

"Let's sit down, shall we?" Adeline smiled as she sat on Gary's bed.

Delia sat on a chair across from her.

Adeline breathed in. Adeline breathed out.

"You're scaring me, Adey, please, tell me what's going on now."

"Alright." Adeline smiled. "How long have we been best friends, Delia?"

"I guess it's been a while now, around… 10 years?" Delia said thoughtful.

"It's been so long since the day we met, hasn't it?" Adeline sighed.

"Well, I remember Alex bringing you here as his girlfriend and I couldn't help but laugh out loud," Delia said with a smile.

"Why was it, anyway?" Adeline asked with a curious smile.

"I've known Alex for a very long time, you know my dad, may he rest in peace, and professor Oak were great friends, it was natural I got to become friends with Alex when we were kids," Delia sighed with a smile.

"Isn't that amazing? Our families have been friends for generations," Adeline said as she looked to a photograph next to Gary's bed… a photograph of him and Ash in Kanto's pokémon amusement park.

"My father and professor Oak; Alex, Reid, you and I, and now Ash and Gary," Delia smiled trying to hold back the tears.

"I wonder if at some point our families will like… fuse with each other," Adeline said with a small laugh.

"Maybe our grandchildren," Delia said with a smile.

"Yeah," Adeline sighed as she looked down to the floor.

Delia noticed there was something odd about Adeline the moment she and Alexander came back from their business trip, and now it was the time to ask about it.

"I know you have something on your mind, please tell me what it is, Adey."

Adeline breathed in. Adeline breathed out.

"I thought I was going to die, Delia," Adeline sighed trying to remain calm.

But Delia couldn't.

"What?!" Delia exclaimed scared. "What happened?"

"I'm fine now, that's what matters," Adeline said trying to keep Delia calm.

"What happened, Adeline?!" Delia demanded with tears on her eyes.

Adeline breathed in. Adeline breathed out.

Then Adeline proceeded to explain Delia about the plane's turbulences, the same as Alexander had explained to Reid.

"There was just one thought on my mind… Gary," Adeline sighed with tears on her eyes.

Delia hugged her best friend to give her the support she needed.

"Can you promise me something?" Adeline asked as Delia hugged.

"Anything, Adey, just say it," Delia sighed.

"If I am ever gone… promise me you'll take good care of Gary."

Delia breathed in. Delia breathed out.

"I will, Adey, promise me you'll take good care of Ash if something happens to me," Delia said closing her eyes.

Adeline smiled. "I will, Delia."

They stopped hugging a few moments after that and then they dried their tears off with some tissues.

"You've been the greatest friend I've ever had," Adeline said holding Delia's hand as she smiled to her.

"Adey! We just finished drying off our tears!" Delia exclaimed with a happy smile and on the edge of crying again.

Adeline smiled and hugged her best friend once again.

"You're also the most wonderful friend I've had, Adey," Delia sighed as she hugged her best friend.

"Alright, stop the tears, why don't we hang out today? Just us girls," Adeline proposed with a smile.

"Really?" Delia asked surprised.

"Yeah, we can go shopping, go watch a movie, anything, I want to spend time with my best friend."

"I… I don't know… why don't we leave it for Saturday? Reid and I still have some things to do in the lab," Delia said worried.

"C'mon, Delia! I'm sure Reid will understand," Adeline insisted.

Delia sighed with a smile on her face. "Okay, you got me."

"Great! Let's get going!" Adeline exclaimed holding Delia's hand and running out of the room with her.

 **-o-**

It was late at night already. Delia had spent the whole day with Adeline while Reid and Ash had spent the whole day with Alexander and Gary.

Delia didn't know Reid had spent the day with Alex and Reid didn't know Delia had spent the day with Adeline, not until they got back to the mansion around 9:00PM that night.

Delia, Reid, and Ash said their goodbyes to Adeline, Alexander, and Gary and then they walked home.

Delia was holding her son's left hand and Reid was holding his son's right hand as they walked together down the street.

"How curious both Adey and Alex asked us to spend the day with them," Delia said.

"They had a rough trip, and besides, I think we all needed it, maybe we should convince them to go on a trip on their yacht next weekend," Reid sighed as he looked to the sky.

"That'd be nice, yeah."

"So, tell your mom about our day today, champ," Reid asked his son.

"It was wonderful, mom, you should have been there!" Ash exclaimed with a lot of enthusiasm.

Delia smiled as her son told her everything he had done that day with Gary, Alexander and Reid, as they spent the day together.

It was a family walk full of smiles and exciting anecdotes.

 **-o-**

Back in the Oak mansion, Adeline and Alexander had just sent their son to bed. They read him a bedtime story, the two of them together, something that wasn't very common.

"And they lived happily ever after," Adeline finished the last sentence in the book.

Little Gary was smiling under his sheets. Alexander and Adeline were sitting on the bed next to him.

"Can we do it again tomorrow? I love it when you both tell me stories!"

Alexander and Adeline breathed in. Alexander and Adeline breathed out.

"Of course, baby," Adeline said caressing his son's forehead.

"Sleep well, champ," Alexander said giving his son a good night kiss.

"We love you, honey," Adeline said giving Gary a good night kiss too.

"I love you, mom, dad," little Gary smiled.

"See you tomorrow," Adeline said standing up and walking to the door, she was followed by her husband.

Adeline got out of Gary's room, Alexander turned off the lights and then he left the room behind her.

The moment the closed the door, Adeline broke. She fell to her husband's arms and cried inconsolably.

 **-o-**

Reid got up the next morning feeling better than ever, he and his wife had had one of those magical nights a marriage could only have when their children went to bed early.

When he opened his eyes that morning, Reid didn't think his life was about to change forever. He should have suspected something when he saw the side of the bed where his wife slept on was empty.

He got dressed and walked down the stairs. He smelled something delicious as he walked to the kitchen, his wife was making breakfast, a very delicious one.

"Good morning, beautiful," Reid smiled kissing his wife's neck.

"Reid! Stop it!" Delia exclaimed with a laugh because her husband's kisses on her neck usually gave her goosebumps.

"I love you," Reid sighed hugging his wife from behind.

"I love you too," Delia smiled feeling like the luckiest woman on the planet.

Reid smiled and walked to the fridge and he took out the orange juice and he served three glasses, he was expecting his son to wake up soon.

Delia finished making breakfast: pancakes, eggs, and bacon. She served the table, her husband took the glasses of juice to the table as well.

"Good morning!" little Ash exclaimed with excitement as he ran down the stairs.

"Don't run on the stairs!" Delia exclaimed worried about her son.

"Sorry!" little Ash exclaimed ashamed.

"C'mon, champion, let's have breakfast together!" Reid exclaimed as he hugged his son good morning.

"It smells delicious, mom!"

"Thank you, sweetie," Delia said with a pride smile.

The happy family sat down to eat breakfast together, like every day.

About 15 minutes later, they were all done and little Ash got out to the backyard to play a little with his father's poliwag and his mother's squirtle.

"I'll help with the dishes today," Reid said taking all the dishes from the table before his wife could do so.

"Thank you, darling," Delia said with a smile and she walked to the television to check on the weather. "I think it's going to rain today, but let's just verify it," she said as she turned on the TV.

"Good," Reid said putting on the dish gloves.

" _We're live from route 1, about 3 miles from Viridian city. There has been a severe car accident just a few minutes ago,"_ a well-known local reporter was broadcasting live from a familiar point in route 1 and behind her… there was a car in flames, a firetruck, two police cars and one ambulance.

Delia stood frozen in front of the TV, it had been ages since she had seen an accident like that on TV. Her husband joined her as soon as he heard the word accident, he was still wearing the yellow dish gloves. Little Ash was still playing in the backyard.

" _The paramedics are doing everything they can to save these two people who were in the car, we still don't have any information regarding the identities of the victims but we're sure the paramedics will provide us with information as soon as they can."_

Delia and Reid breathed in. Delia and Reid breathed out.

They were nervous, but they didn't know why exactly, there was something deep inside their hearts trying to tell them something.

Then in the TV screen, a paramedic walked and whispered something into the reporter's ear and then he left.

" _The paramedics have identified the people who were in that car and unfortunately they are both dead. These people are the president of Elswood Enterprises Alexander Oak and his wife Adeline Oak."_

Delia screamed. Reid froze.

Delia kept screaming. Reid hugged his wife.

Delia cried. Reid cried.

"What's going on, mom?" Little Ash entered the house as he heard his mom screaming.

"Go to your room, champion." Reid said breathing in.

"But dad…"

"Go to your room!" Reid screamed in anger and his son ran to his room, scared because he had never seen his father like that.

"They… they… they… knew…" Delia's words had trouble coming out of her mouth, it was like she had little oxygen in her lungs and she couldn't breathe anymore.

"No… no… no, they didn't…." Reid said walking around the room, pulling his hair out.

"This isn't possible… Alex and Adey…"

"This is all my fault!" Reid exclaimed pulling his hair out with all the strength he had, crying and hitting the table with his fists, even if all those things he did hurt him.

"It's not your fault, Reid," Delia said with her face full of tears.

"He tried to warn me yesterday, he… he knew… and I couldn't do anything… I couldn't…" Reid started hitting himself.

"Stop it! Stop it, Reid!" Delia exclaimed in fear, running to her husband, and hugging him so he wouldn't hurt himself.

Then he kept crying, he felt his heart out, he felt his tears were blood because they hurt so much. Delia wasn't in less pain, she was devastated.

Their best friends had died.

 **-o-**

The rest of the day had been gloomy and dark, it rained indeed after all.

Professor Oak was devastated, he had lost his wife the year before and now, he had lost his beloved son and his daughter in law.

Little Gary was in pain too, he was old enough to realize what all those people wearing black were doing in his house, crying; because he had lived that the year before when his grandmother left the mansion. Even if he didn't know yet it was death, he was sure he would never see his parents again. Little Ash had no idea about what was going on, so he stood by little Gary's side all the time.

Reid and Delia were the closest ones to professor Oak, helping and comforting him in such a hard time.

And in the middle of the wake, Reid got a phone call. He was about to turn off his cellphone but when he saw the name on the screen, he knew he had to answer.

"I'll be back in a moment," Reid said to his wife and professor Oak and he got out of the mansion.

He was about to answer when he saw a familiar face across the street: Christine Oak.

What did they talk about? No one will ever know… but it was enough for Reid to begin his pokémon journey the day after.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

"I need to know the truth," Gary sighed after looking at all those newspapers about his grandmother and his parents. "Gramps… why has he kept all these newspapers after all these years? He… he must be in pain… silent pain… I… have to tell grandma she needs to come back…"

His eyes were red, he had been crying in pain for the past minutes. Ash was still hugging him and giving him support. What had started as an innocent trip to the attic had ended in sorrow for Gary.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Do you want me to drive?" Ash asked knowing Gary wanted to go talk to his grandmother.

"Please," Gary said drying his tears off.

"Let's go," Ash said with a supporting smile and he held Gary's hand.

"Wait," Gary sighed.

Ash turned around and Gary gave him a passionate and lasting kiss.

Ash and Gary breathed in. Ash and Gary breathed out.

And they were still kissing in the middle of that old rusty attic.

Finally, they needed to take some air and the kiss ended.

Now Gary smiled, weakly, but he smiled. He felt just a little better.

Gary closed his eyes. He breathed in. He breathed out.

He was strong, he was going to be strong, he had to be strong, and Ash would make sure of that.

"Let's go," Gary sighed.

Ash and Gary left the attic and they made their way to the first floor of the mansion. When they got to the living room, nobody was around, Gary took his car keys and gave them to Ash.

Moments later, they were out of the mansion and about to get into Gary's car.

"Are you sure about this?" Ash asked.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I am," he sighed with determination.

Ash then held both of Gary's hands.

"I'm going to be here for you, Gary, I'll be your support, always, you got that?" he asked him with a smile.

"I'm so lucky," Gary said with a teary smile.

Then Ash hugged Gary once again.

"I have the best boyfriend in the world," Gary sighed.

Ash couldn't help but get a big smile on his face.

"What?" Gary asked blushing.

"That's the first time you call me your boyfriend… I like it," Ash smiled.

"Oh! Stop it!" Gary exclaimed completely embarrassed, his cheeks were passionately red and he covered his face to hide it. "Can we go now?" Gary asked entering the car and taking the passenger seat.

"Yeah, boyfriend," Ash said entering the car and Gary blushed even more.

 **-o-**

Ash drove about two hours from Pallet town to Fuschia city, where Gary's grandmother had been secretly living for the past 13 years.

Ash stopped the car in the outskirts of the city, to the east, in front of a small house surrounded by trees.

"Is this her house?"

"Yeah," Gary sighed.

Ash held Gary's hand and looked him in the eyes.

"You can do this, but if you think you're not ready, we can come back any other time, it doesn't matter if I am in Alola, I will come back and be here for you."

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Thank you, Ashy, but I need to do this now," he smiled and kissed Ash for a few seconds.

Then Gary unbuckled his seat belt and went out of the car.

"I'll be waiting here," Ash smiled. "Good luck there, baby."

"Thank you, Ashy," Gary said blushing.

Gary walked slowly to the door of his grandma's house, Ash stood there in the car, watching him go.

Ash knew Gary would take some time with his grandma but Ash didn't care, he was going to wait for his boyfriend even if it took him the whole day, even if after that they couldn't spend the day together after all.

Gary knocked the door and he was quickly welcomed by his grandma wearing a smile, and she wasn't alone, there was a lovely jigglypuff with her; Christine saw Ash and invited him to come in but Gary quickly told her the motive of his visit and her face got serious all of a sudden.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

It was the time for her grandson to know the truth… the whole truth.

Grandma and grandson entered the house and closed the door behind them.

After all, they didn't want the secrets about to be revealed to come out of there.

 **-o-**

Ash stayed in the car, wishing the best for Gary, but he was nervous. Silence wasn't doing him any good so he turned on the radio hoping it would keep him calm and yes, music found the way to soothe him.

One hour later, Gary emerged from his grandma's house. He was in tears and his face was red.

"Why did you do this to me? Why? Why? Why did you have to hide this from me?!" Gary shouted in pain, falling on his knees to the floor.

Ash got out of the car as fast as he could and he ran towards Gary.

"My parents, my parents, my parents! This isn't fair! Why did you have to take them away from me? I needed them! I need them!" Gary shouted to the sky; his grandmother was standing in front of him, crying and heartbroken.

Ash stood on his knees behind Gary and hugged him. Ash closed his eyes and he breathed in, and he breathed out, hoping the sound of his breathing would calm Gary down.

"Gary…" Christine tried to say something but her voice was too tired from crying.

"Get away from me! Get away from me!" Gary exclaimed pushing Ash behind and then he stood up and started running.

"Gary!" Ash exclaimed running after his boyfriend.

Christine tried to run after the boys but she stopped by Gary's car to breathe, Ash turned to see if she was fine and she nodded, telling him in silence to go after her grandson.

 **-o-**

Gary crossed the street without looking to both sides.

"Gary, please stop!" Ash screamed but Gary ignored him.

Ash ran as fast as he could and caught up with Gary after two minutes.

"Stop!" Ash yelled pulling Gary's t-shirt, almost ripping it apart and forcing him to stop.

Gary surrendered and he hugged Ash and he cried inconsolably on his shoulder.

This was different from the other times Gary had cried on Ash's shoulder.

Gary was crying like if he had just heard for the first time that his parents had died.

Gary held on too Ash intensely and Ash just stood there, letting Gary release everything.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"They… they… they…"

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"They… they… they… were… killed…" When Gary said those words, he felt his heart shattering into a million pieces, the memories of his parents, his lovely, wonderful, and happy parents were there with him.

Ash was shocked, but he had to remain strong, for Gary, he was Gary's tower of strength.

Gary eventually stopped crying, not because he wasn't in pain anymore but because his eyes were dried.

Ash had been looking to the sky for a very long time as Gary was hugging him and crying on his shoulder.

There was now pure silence between them, no more crying.

Ash breathed in. Ash breathed out.

"Your parents," Ash sighed, still looking to the sky.

Gary looked to Ash, still hugging him.

"They lived a happy life, and they loved you, I don't remember them much… but I do remember your mom smiling all the time, and your father always laughing, when they were together just the two of them… and when they were with you… I do remember that because that's what my parents used to do as well… and at that time I thought it was something all parents did with their children…" Ash said with a smile as he watched the clouds move.

"Ash…" Gary sighed.

Now Ash looked to Gary's eyes.

"We were lucky we got to grow up in a happy family… even if it lasted just a little…" Ash said holding Gary's hands. "Your parents would have wanted you to keep being the happy little boy you used to be when they were with you."

Christine Oak had walked after Ash and Gary and she had been hiding behind a tree a few feet away. She smiled and shed some tears when she saw that beautiful scene between her grandson and Delia's son.

She then realized she couldn't keep that boy apart from his father anymore.

Christine decided she would give the boys some privacy and she returned home. When she got back, the first thing she did was to dial a number in her phone.

She heard the phone on the other side of the line ringing.

Christine breathed in. Christine breathed out.

Someone finally answered the call, she didn't need to ask who it was.

"It's time for you to come back, the truth has finally been said," she sighed sitting on her old couch. "By the way… your son is so much like you, you should be proud of him, very, he has such a big heart like yours… Red," she added with tears on her eyes.

 **-o-**

 _8 years later_

The Oak mansion looked lovelier than ever. The living room was covered in white colors, pearl-colored sofas with white cushions that were in the corners of the living room, beautiful white roses on elegant crystal vases in small crystal tables to the sides of the room as well, a gorgeous crystal chandelier in the middle of the room and below it, the living room was spacy and empty, like a dance floor with a big white rug over the wooden floor.

On the walls, there were paintings but there was an outstanding one: an original Tracey Sketchit valued in 1 million dollars, a personal gift from the groom's best man.

Delia Ketchum arrived at the mansion holding hands with her husband, Reid Ketchum, they were smiling, they were very happy. But they didn't arrive alone, a little boy about 5 years old was with them.

"This looks astounding, Misty, you did a great job!" Delia exclaimed overjoyed by the whiteness of the room.

Misty smiled. "It was all Tracey, it's nice to have an artist as a husband, everything arrived from Kalos yesterday," she said with a smile as she watched her husband walk around the room talking on his cellphone.

"No! I'm telling you that all those paintings, no exceptions, must arrive to Kanto's Museum by today! You got it?" Tracey asked a little stressed on his phone. "I gotta go, I have guests," he smiled when he saw Delia and Reid by the door.

"Daddy! Miss Ketchum taught me how to bake muffins!" The little boy who arrived with Delia and Reid exclaimed running to Tracey and Tracey took him into his arms.

"Hello, kiddo! She did?" Tracey asked with a huge smile on his face looking to Delia and Reid. "Let's go get you dressed!" Tracey exclaimed going up the stairs with his son.

"Thanks for watching him today, we've been quite busy with the decorations since this morning," Misty said to Delia and Reid as she watched her husband and son go up the stairs.

"Always a pleasure, he's such a wonderful boy," Reid said still hugging his wife.

"No! No! No! I'm telling you he's busy today and tomorrow and the day after for the next two weeks!" A young adult emerged from the kitchen talking on his cellphone. "I don't care, his pokémon masterness is getting married today! He deserves these two weeks and if you keep bugging me I'm going to make it a month!" the boy shouted to the phone and he hung up. "I need a drink," he sighed walking back to the kitchen.

"Did he just call him… his pokémon masterness?" Delia asked with a laugh.

"Sounds cool," Reid smiled.

"I'll go check on him and the alcohol, he's been quite stressed since this morning and he just turned 21, alcohol can be quite attractive to him right now," Misty laughed following the boy to the kitchen.

"Being the pokémon master's assistant sure sounds like a stressful job," Reid said with a laugh.

"What about you? Don't frontier brains get to have assistants too?" Delia asked her husband with curiosity as they walked to the kitchen together.

The doorbell rang again.

"I'll get it!" Misty exclaimed running from the kitchen with a bottle of rum on her hand.

"Hey, I deserve it!" the boy ran after her.

"Alright, Sun, but go easy, we need you sober for the wedding," Misty said handling him the bottle.

"I'm just going to make me a piña colada, Misty, I won't get drunk," Sun said taking the bottle and going back to the kitchen.

Misty rolled her eyes as she smiled and then she opened the door.

"Sorry if we're late!" Dawn entered the mansion holding hands with her boyfriend.

"Hey, guys! Please come in!" Misty exclaimed happily to welcome her friends.

"Wow! This place looks amazing! I hope nobody kills me if I accidentally spill some wine," Brock laughed as he held his girlfriend's hand.

Meanwhile, Delia, Reid and Sun were in the kitchen.

"Hey, you're here!" Agatha exclaimed with a smile as she entered the kitchen from the backyard.

"Hi, Agathy," Delia smiled hugging miss Samuel Oak. He was no longer professor Oak, he had retired about 6 years ago to enjoy his golden years with his wife.

"Where's Samuel?" Reid asked curious.

"You know the old man, he's feeding those lovely pokémon of his," Agatha said proudly.

"I hope I'm not too late," Christine said walking into the kitchen, she had arrived after Brock and Dawn.

"That's a stunning dress!" Sun exclaimed spilling some of the rum as he prepared the piña colada mix.

Everyone in the room laughed.

Sun used some of the newspaper to clean the spilled rum. He used one interesting front page without noticing:

 _Fall of the Rocket._

The doorbell kept ringing but Misty was taking care of welcoming the guests in the living room.

"Whatever you're making, I want one," Agatha told Sun as she made her way from the kitchen to the living room.

"Make it two," Christine smiled joining Agatha and they walked together to the living room as they started chatting and laughing.

"I'm so gonna make Hau proud for teaching me how to make these," Sun said to himself.

"Oh my God!" someone exclaimed in a very overly excited tone from the living room.

"Oh God! I can't believe she's here!" Sun exclaimed a little angry… and terrified.

"Who's she?" Reid asked with curiosity as he looked to the living room and there he saw a blond young woman about Sun's age.

"Lillie, my best friend, I'm glad to see her but I bet my ass she's going to try to pair me with someone tonight and…" Sun sighed. "Oh my God, she can be so annoying." Sun breathed in, Sun breathed out.

"Is that so bad?" Delia asked with a laugh.

"Sunny! You're here!" Lillie asked entering the kitchen.

"I get the annoying part now," Reid joked and Delia punched him softly and soon after that they left the kitchen to the living room.

In the living room, they met some Ash's old friends, as well as some Gary's scientist colleagues.

 **-o-**

Tracey had already dressed his son and soon after that he went to his best friend's room.

"Wow, man, you look so handsome," Tracey said with a huge smile on his face as he saw Gary putting on his bowtie.

Gary smiled. Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Is everyone downstairs?" Gary asked nervous.

"I don't know, I just finished dressing Tyler and immediately came here."

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"I'm so nervous, man," Gary said with a laugh.

"You'll be fine, dude," Tracey smiled hitting Gary softly on his shoulder.

"Hey, you're here!" Samuel exclaimed entering the room.

"I'll be waiting downstairs with the others," Tracey smiled leaving the room.

"Is everything alright, gramps?" Gary asked worried.

"Yes, Reid just went to pick Ash up, we're meeting at the top of the stairs of the living room, shall we go?" Samuel smiled offering his arm to Gary.

Gary breathed in. Gary breathed out.

"Let's go," Gary smiled placing his arm around his grandfather's.

Grandson and grandfather walked through the hall and once they emerged at the top of the stairs, Gary could see the whiteness of the room and everyone downstairs waiting for him and his husband-to-be.

Music started playing before Gary could notice.

"Don't turn around," Reid said from behind Gary and Samuel, he was there with his son.

There was a huge smile on Gary's face when he heard his father-in-law's voice. He then started walking down the stairs with his grandfather, then they walked to the center of the living room.

Samuel left Gary and then he joined his wife in the crowd who was staring happily.

Gary turned around and he saw his husband-to-be with his father. Then they started walking down the stairs together.

"You're one hell of a man, son, I'm very proud of you," Reid said to his son as they walked down the stairs.

"Thanks, dad, I owe it all to you and mom," Ash smiled watching everyone in the room.

"Mostly your mom," Reid smiled watching his wife in the crowd, shedding tears of happiness to see her son walking to the altar.

They kept walking until they finally arrived at the center of the room.

"Take good care of him," Reid said giving Ash's hand to Gary.

"I will, Mr. Ketchum," Gary said with a smile as he held Ash's hand.

Reid smiled back and he went back to the crowd to join his lovely wife.

"I can't believe you're wearing that tie," Ash said with a laugh.

"I can't believe we're climbing Mt. Silver for our honeymoon, I hope I don't get vertigo." Gary laughed.

Ash and Gary turned around to face the people who were marrying them, a familiar face, two familiar faces, three familiar faces, one of them a talking pokémon.

Ash and Gary held hands.

"Dearly beloved, we're gathered here tonight to celebrate…"

"…the wedding of Gary Oak and Ash Ketchum."

"Meowth, that's right!"

 **FIN**


	28. Epilogue?

**Epilogue?**

Author's note: whether this epilogue is canon to the story or not is left to the reader's interpretation.

 **-o-**

Shortly after Ash and Gary said their "I do's" and officially got married, the wedding reception in the Oak mansion's backyard was about to start; but Christine Oak decided to take a walk outside before celebrating her grandson's marriage...

She crossed the street, with her camera on hand, and crossed paths with a woman pushing a man in a wheelchair.

"Hi, mother," the man in the wheelchair said with a melancholic smile.

Christine couldn't hold up the tears and she hugged the man as the woman began crying too.

The upper right side of the man's face was covered with a bandage that surrounded his head and his forehead, his right eye was covered with an eye patch under the bandage. The woman who was with him had aged gracefully and looked as beautiful as she ever was in her youth.

"C'mon mother… we didn't come here to cry about this," the man said with a teary laugh.

"I'm sorry, you're right," Christine said, smiling, and drying off her tears.

"They looked so beautiful and happy together, especially Gary… he's so handsome," Christine said giving the camera to the woman.

"Let's see them," the woman said kneeling next to the man and they started watching the photos together.

And they cried. Happy tears. Proud tears. Their son was happily married to their best friends' son. Who would have thought of that?

"He looks just like you when we got married, honey," Adeline said with tears and a smile, caressing her husband's face.

"He does." Alexander sighed proudly.

"Christine? We need you for the toast!" Reid exclaimed getting out of the mansion and crossing the street.

"Shit!" Alexander exclaimed covering his face and Adeline quickly made a turn with the wheelchair to leave, but it was too late.

"Oh my God! Oh my God!" Reid exclaimed, astounded, running so he was now in front of Alexander and Adeline.

Despite the bandages covering Alexander's face and the years that had passed, Reid recognized his best friend; and it was even easier to recognize Adeline.

"You're alive! You guys are alive!" He cried with joy, kneeling, and hugging his old best friend.

"I'll handle this, honey... please go back to the car… and mother… leave us alone and make sure nobody else gets out of the mansion… and thanks for the photos," Alexander sighed, closing his eye.

"Wait! Where are you going, Blue?" Reid asked Adeline, grabbing her wrist before she could leave.

Christine crossed the street and returned to the mansion.

"Don't make this harder, Reid… I beg you, please" Adeline cried and ran away with the camera, then she disappeared as she turned around the corner.

Reid was confused… his best friends were alive… so why were they sad to see him? And why was Adeline leaving? Wasn't she going to stay at her son's wedding? Weren't they?

"Green… what's going on?" Reid asked Alexander.

"Stop using those damn cursed names!" Alexander shouted with anger.

"But…"

"Stop it!" Alexander yelled out louder this time.

"I… I don't understand… have you been alive all this time? Why?" Reid asked trying to connect the pieces of the puzzle… but he didn't have many.

Reid remembered attending to Adeline and Alexander's funeral… he remembered watching his wife, his son, professor Oak and Gary mourning their deaths… had they faked their deaths just like Christine had? No way… Reid also remembered identifying their burnt bodies… he remembered that because it had been a living hell.

But now he saw Alexander in a wheelchair… and the bandages in his face clearly suggested he had burn injuries… so probably the accident had been real after all…

Reid was confused… shocked… nothing made sense. "I… I don't understand."

"It's better this way, please… don't say anything about this to anyone, I am begging you…"

"But… you guys can come back now, can't you? Team Rocket's finally been dismantled… there's nobody who can harm you and your family now… think about Gary…"

"Exactly, I am thinking about him… Reid… how do you think he will react to the fact that his parents have been alive all along? He will never forgive us for leaving him like that… we're too ashamed to come back, please understand…" Alexander sighed, trying to be strong, but he was already sobbing.

"But Christine came back! And look how happy she is now! You have no idea how happy Gary's been since she got back into his life," Reid said, trying to convince Alexander.

"It's too late… it's just too damn late… Alexander Oak and Adeline Oak are dead… so as Green Oak and Blue Leaflight… so as Red Ketchum."

Reid could feel his heart stopping for a second.

"Don't do this… I don't want to lose my best friend again," Reid said, getting emotional, and crying on Alexander's lap.

"I'm… so sorry, Reid… you weren't supposed to see us today."

"I wasn't?" Reid asked, standing up and with anger on his eyes.

"Don't, please don't… you know I did this because I wanted to keep my son safe…"

"I know…" Reid sighed, immediately calming down. "So… where are you guys living now?"

"Can't tell you… I know you and you'd come visit us often," Alexander said with a smile.

"Would that be so bad?"

"I don't want Yellow… I mean, Delia, to suspect anything."

"I see…" Reid sighed, swallowing all the words he wanted to say because he knew it would be a waste of saliva trying to convince Alexander to stay.

"I'm sorry things turned out this way, old friend," Alexander said, crestfallen. "But look how happy our sons are together... that makes me feel relieved," he added with a smile.

"They are happy, indeed," Reid said looking to the mansion.

"Please tell Gary that Adeline and I would be so proud and very happy for him."

Reid sighed. "I will. I'll even tell some embarrassing anecdotes of us during the toast," Reid said with a laugh.

Alexander laughed. "I dare you, Ketchum."

"You can't stop me," Reid said with a cocky smile.

Then Alexander rolled his eyes. "I guess this is it," he sighed.

"Let me take you to your car," Reid offered.

"Just push me around the corner and then I'll go back to the car… I don't want Adey to get more emotional than me," Alexander said with a laugh.

"Fair enough."

Reid pushed Alexander's wheelchair until they reach the street corner.

"I guess I'll just… go back to the party," Reid sighed.

"Have fun," Alexander said with a nostalgic smile.

"Goodbye, friend," Reid sighed, hugging Alexander one last time.

"Goodbye, Reid, please take care of my son."

"I guess that's my son's job now," Reid said with a laugh as he started walking.

"Hey!" Alexander shouted before Reid turned around the block.

"Yes?"

"Thank you… for everything… Red," Green smiled.

"Always," Red smiled back.


End file.
